Konoha Club Kids
by Mordred LeFay
Summary: Konoha's first nightclub opens on the weekend of Shikamaru and Ino's 20th birthdays and almost everyone including the Sand sibs are there! Wackiness ensues. ShikaTem lemonlime, NejiTen, implied NaruHina and KankuSaku.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note:** Lime warning for this chapter, folks.

Konoha Club Kids

A Naruto fan-fic

**Shikamaru**

I woke up to Ino sitting on my stomach. Well, to be honest, I started waking up to the zip of a shade flying up into itself and the harsh sunlight turning the peaceful darkness under my eyelids a deep red. "Shikamaruuu! Wake up!" she chirped in the irritatingly musical way of the Morning Person. The clink of dishes, sizzling noise and smell of bacon (which would take days to air out of my tiny, one-bedroom apartment) told me Chouji was up to the usual in the kitchen. "Chouji!" Ino scolded, "stop stuffing your face!"

"I'ng making breakfash!" Chouji retorted, muffled through whatever he was stuffing his face with.

I groaned. Why had I given these two copies of my key? Oh yeah, the _demon woman_ who spawned me had forced me to "in case you lock yourself out." Right, more like so she could check up on me without breaking in herself, to see that I have food, that I cleaned the place and did my laundry, and to make sure no one else was "sleeping over."

Not that she had to worry about that last one, unfortunately.

But what happened was my two best friends now had free entry to what was supposed to finally be my own private, personal living space after twenty long years in my parents' house. It meant coming home from work to an apartment reeking of oh-so-manly Sensual Strawberry body spray because Ino thought the place smelled musty. It meant that food kept mysteriously disappearing from the fridge faster than I could possibly be eating it.

It also meant that shit like this happened at least once a week. I didn't mind Chouji cooking me breakfast, because damn could the man make breakfast, but Ino bouncing around like a chirpy little bird was a bit to take.

"Happy Saturday!" she squealed. "Guess what weekend it is!"

I finally opened my eyes a squint. "That most troublesome of weekends?" I guessed.

Ino grinned. "Happy Birthday, Shika-kun!" she shouted.

Oh yeah, our birthday weekend. My birthday is September 22nd, Ino's September 23rd. Our mothers were in labor practically side by side, though while Ino's mom coos that we're spiritual twins, my mom can only complain about how much tougher her labor was. "Troublesome child," she'd say, glaring at me as though I did it on purpose.

Yeah, my mother says "troublesome" too. Where did you think I got it from?

"Ino, I'm gonna barf if you don't stop jumping up and down on my stomach," I warned. She hopped off.

"Quick, go take a shower and we can eat breakfast!" she urged, tugging on my arm. I played dead, complete with lolling tongue and open, blank eyes. "I can't wait to tell you the plan for the day."

"Ino, you should know by now that the best gift you could ever give me would be to _let me sleep in on my birthday_!" I grumbled.

"Don't be silly," Ino scoffed, and yanked the covers off of me. Immediately she yelped and clamped her hands over her eyes. "Shikamaru!" she cried. "When did you start sleeping naked?"

I shrugged. "I got hot last night," I said. Either she hadn't seen the boxers hanging on the lamp or she thought it was just dirty laundry.

"You could've said!"

"I didn't know you were going to start stripping the bed," I retorted, and got up, stretching lazily, taking my time.

"Are you--?" Ino peeked. "Ugh! Go, go!" she urged, covering her eyes with one hand and waving frantically with the other. I yawned and scratched my ass as I went out into the hall. "You're disgusting!" she yelled after me.

"Hey!" I yelled back, "a man should be able to walk buck-naked around his own apartment without worrying about his friends busting in on him."

Chouji poked his head around the corner. "What are you yelling about—oh!" He recoiled and put up the spatula as though shielding himself. "Put the monster away, man."

I looked down and realized what had probably freaked Ino out so much. Morning wood. Ugh. I shuffled off to the bathroom, gesturing obscenely and grumbling about my pain-in-the-ass friends.

Normally I'd relax in the shower a bit after washing up, lay in the tub while the air fills up with steam, maybe entertain some thoughts of _her_ for a while, until the water ran cold. My mother used to shut the hot water off on me, but now that I was paying the bills, it was a luxury I could enjoy without interference. Except for today, of course, my _birthday_, when I should be doing what I want.

For my friends' sake, and to avoid a troublesome ass-kicking, I made it short. Returning to my happily Ino-free bedroom with a towel around my waist, I found a package on the bed. It was wrapped in shiny blue paper, and it flopped when I picked it up. I tore the paper off to find a black, button-down shirt made of silk. Definitely too swank for my tastes. Ino had, strangely enough, wrapped the card inside the package. _Wear this today!_ It read.

"The things I do…" I sighed, but pulled the shirt on anyway. It was less of a pain in the ass than arguing about it, and it did feel nice and cool against my skin. It was weirdly warm lately; September had started out as though the weather had decided, "Yup, autumn" and wanted to demonstrate what it could do. Rain, cold, wind, the whole bit. Then this past week it was as if it was exhausted and needed a rest, and we slid back into summer. I suppose I should have been happy; it was bright and beautiful out, the sky filled with puffy clouds. But I had a feeling that Ino wouldn't be leaving me enough unscheduled time to watch them, unless she was truly feeling giving.

"The pancakes are getting cold!" Ino called from the kitchen. "And eaten!"

"I can make more!" Chouji protested as I came in and sat down. "Happy Birthday!" he greeted me and flapped a stack of pancakes onto my plate while Ino poured me tea.

"Thanks," I said. The pancakes were awesome, as usual. Even lukewarm they were heavenly. "It tastes incredible," I said, and Chouji beamed.

"Here, have some bacon," he said, sliding some over. "My present to you is to make dinner for you at your parents' house. And I baked you a cake."

"You are amazing, man," I said. Now that I had food in me I felt up to forgiving them for invading my place. That I had to see my parents at some time today was inevitable; hopefully my mother would be in a good mood.

Ino smiled. "I knew that shirt would look good on you," she said.

I looked down; I forgot I was even wearing it. "Yeah, thanks. It's uh… fancy."

"Well, why not dress up? It's your birthday, after all."

I raised an eyebrow at her. "My mom will be happy to see me in something besides my uniform," I said carefully, trying to analyze her somewhat sly expression. She was plotting something, I knew it. "After all, it's not like we're going out anywh—" Ino slid a lime-green piece of paper across the table at me.

What fresh hell was this? "Klub Konoha?" I read aloud. How "klever."

Ino leaned over the table to peer at the paper upside-down. I averted my eyes from her cleavage. I know what everyone thinks about me and Ino, but we tried dating. It lasted an afternoon. When we finally worked up the nerve to kiss, it was like locking lips with a sibling. Considering neither of us have siblings, we took that as a sign that it definitely wasn't meant to be.

Ino read: "Join us for our first night as the newest, hottest, and only nightclub in the Hidden Leaf. Cool drinks, hot music! September 22nd, doors open at 8pm. 18+. No admission without ID." She smiled and nodded expectantly.

Somewhere, a cricket chirped. "Damn, I thought I got rid of that thing," I said.

"They're good luck," Chouji reminded me, "leave it be."

"Ahem," Ino said, settling back down in her chair. "To get back to the point… you remember when they were renovating that big building that used to have all those businesses in it? The thrift store and maybe a lawyer and the Laundromat and the nail place that kept changing names at least once a week?"

I vaguely remembered something. "Oh yeah, we walked past it on our way back to town after our assassination mission last month," I recalled. That was a long mission. It involved Ino posing as a courtesan and doing a lot of mind-replacement to frame various high-profile officials, and a lot of reverse-medical jutsu to fake some "natural" deaths. "I was wondering what was with the neon light shaped like the leaf symbol."

"Well, that's where this nightclub is."

"Why do we need a nightclub anyway?" Chouji spoke up. "We're not a tourist town."

"We are when the chuunin exams come around," Ino pointed out.

"So twice a year, assuming the exams don't move to another village. I give it three weeks," I said.

"What a downer you are," Ino muttered and sipped her tea.

"Seriously, though, 'Klub Konoha'? Way to be creative."

"Well, what would you have called it?" Ino challenged.

I pushed the paper back to her and forked up some more pancake. "Leaf After Dark," I said without thinking.

"Fire and Shadow," Chouji offered, pouring more tea.

"The Flaming Leaf."

"That sounds like a gay bar," Ino sniffed.

"Or a reminder of Orochimaru's threats," Chouji said.

"Oh, good point."

"Jiraya's. Or The Ero Sennin," Chouji suggested.

"Hah, sounds like something Naruto would suggest," I laughed. "But it sounds too much like a tavern. It has to be one word, like 'Liquid'."

"Oh, oh, or—" he laughed, almost choking, "here's one Naruto would like: Dattebayo!"

"Shut up!" Ino yelled, jamming her fork down, tines first, so hard into my table that it sank in enough to stick. Man, now she's ruining my furniture too? "We're going tonight, and if I hear the word 'troublesome' escape your lips," she threatened, holding her butter knife like a kunai."

"No way, Ino," I protested. "I'm not going to some fruity nightclub to flail around like an idiot on my birthday."

"Everyone is going to be there. Even the hokage. Even Temari-san." I froze, and Ino smiled in triumph. "Ah, I knew that would get you."

* * *

Temari… that most troublesome of women, whose absence lately was more troublesome to me than her presence had ever been. The last time I saw her was when she came to Konoha to sit on the committee to decide what questions should be on the written test for the next chuunin exam. After eight to ten hours a day of sitting in a meeting room arguing, she would emerge cramped up, weary, and in the foulest of moods. It was my job to unwind her.

I soon found out what unwound her best, besides a good, exhausting sparring match. Everyone thinks the Flower of Suna is an ice queen, but I'm the lucky guy who got to find out that she's as hot and merciless as the sun over the Sand.

We'd kissed before, when we finally admitted we didn't hate each other as much as we professed, not by half. Quite the opposite, actually. It never got much past the one feverish make-out session. This time, though, with a few months between to think and yearn and be apart, things got, well, steamier.

For those few weeks we were sneaking off every chance we got. One time Temari pulled me into a closet in the hokage offices and we made out for the entirety of her fifteen minute coffee break. After a particularly grueling sparring match, she gave me a back massage that turned into a full-body massage with, um, "full release," as they call it. I was amazed. For the longest time Temari seemed she'd rather kill me than look at me, and now she couldn't keep her hands off of me. Nor could I keep mine off of her.

The night before she was supposed to leave, we ate dinner at my parents' house. My dad sent us out to feed the deer. I had my mother believing that feeding the deer took half an hour, when it was more like ten minutes. As soon as we were done doling out the deer chow, it started to rain. It was the perfect opportunity; my parents wouldn't come out in the rain and would assume we were waiting for it to let up to avoid getting soaked.

Temari was standing near one of the windows, watching the rain fall with the fascination of someone who never sees such quantities of water falling out of the sky. She was cold; she was shivering, her exposed skin bumping up, her nipples hard under her thin kimono. Temari never dressed for the weather, partly because it changed so rapidly around here, partly because she never could remember what season it was supposed to be and no one thought to warn her. Even if she had been told it was spring, she probably rifled through her mental files and came up with a picture of sunny days and blooming trees. I should have told her that the first part of spring was like a mushy, gloomy winter.

I went up behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist. "Cold?" I asked. She nodded and leaned back against my chest, nuzzling her cheek against mine. A crawling shiver went through me then, but not from cold.

"Mmm, you're nice and warm though," she murmured, brushing her lips against my cheek. Something about the way she hummed that "mmm" grew that shiver into a steady buzzing. I slid my hands up higher, feeling the soft cotton of her kimono, and flicked my thumb against a nipple. She jumped, but made a little satisfied noise in her throat that encouraged me to continue. I slid my hand into her kimono and cupped her breast. "Your hands are cold!" she exclaimed.

"Warmer than you," I replied, working a nipple between my fingers. She turned to kiss me, hungrily. I eased my hand down past her obi until my fingertips encountered wiry curls.

"You're poking me," she said, all matter-of-fact though I could hear her trying to slow her breathing, with little success. She arched back against me and I grunted.

"Sorry, can't help it. It wants to take you for a tumble in the hay." I reached down further, where it was damper. My other arm curled around to continue to tease her nipples. Every little stifled cry was my prize.

"And go back in with my kimono damp in the back and straw in my hair? What would your mother say?" she panted, reaching between us to give me a squeeze. Pleasure throbbed through me and I had to cut off a moan.

I was leaning back against a wall then, since my legs were threatening to collapse and the merest bump from the quietly milling deer would probably send us both down into the hay, at which point there was no stopping us. It would be too bothersome to get up and our desire too urgent to worry about what my mother would think.

I slid my fingers inside of her; she was hot and slippery. She wasn't smooth in there, like I imagined, but full of cushiony ridges and bumps like pillows. I explored these and listened to her moaning, imagining what it'd be like to plunge myself in there, what it would feel like. Definitely different than from a hand callused up from missions and training and gripping kunai and throwing shuriken.

Never would I have predicted, back when we were trying to kill each other during the chuunin exams, that I'd ever end up knuckle-deep in the kazekage's sister, learning to play her by ear like some strange new instrument. I don't think of her that way, though, not as the old kazekage's daughter or the kazekage's sister or the badass kunoichi from Suna. She's just Temari. My Temari, as far as she'd let any possessive stick to her.

She was biting her lip, trying to hold in her noises. I wanted to make her scream. My thumb found that little button my wise old man had advised me about and I rubbed it. "Sh-sh-shika-maru," she breathed through gritted teeth. I nibbled at her neck and couldn't help a throaty chuckle. "Damn you, why are you so good?" she whispered and ground back against me some more.

"I'd say practice," I said, "but considering I haven't been practicing on anyone… I'm a genius?"

She laughed a little. That was when my father's voice came booming across the field, "Wow, what a downpour, eh kids?"

My hands flew from Temari to wipe themselves off on my pants. Temari hurriedly adjusted her kimono. Good ol' dad, giving us time to compose ourselves. He's no fool. Neither is my mom but if had been her, she would have snuck in as quietly as she could to catch us in the act.

Temari began petting one of the deer in a forced-casual way, her cheeks burning redder than I had ever seen. Her hands were shaking. I shoved mine in my pockets, clandestinely adjusting myself and willing my erection to fade.

Dad took his sweet time strolling across the wet field. I didn't know when the rain had stopped; we had been too involved in each other to notice.

"Hey, if you're done feeding the deer, your mom has dessert ready," my dad said, not looking directly at either of us.

"Sounds great," I said, trying to keep my voice and legs steady. I walked to the door. "Coming, Temari?"

"Uh, yeah," she replied quickly. "Um, I should wash my hands. Petting the deer, you know."

"Me too," I said. My dad winked at me and clapped me on the back. I gave him a confused look to hide my nervousness.

The next day, I saw her and her brothers off at the gate as usual. We didn't kiss goodbye, only waved from a distance. Temari smiled and said, "See you later." We don't say "goodbye." It seems less final to say, "see you later," as if we might bump into each other by accident. We try not to think about all the things people seem to think we should, like how any time we part might be the last time we see each other. That sort of thing would be true even if we lived in the same village; after all, people go on missions and sometimes don't come back. It's the life we live.

Usually when Temari leaves, she doesn't look back. Farewells said, she looks ahead, no sadness, no tears. This time she looked back at me, just turning her head slightly so I could see her in profile.

And _winked_.

Damn that woman, I was dreaming about her for weeks after that.

* * *

"Why is Temari going to be there? It's kind of a long way to go for a night on the town," I asked Ino, sopping up the last of the syrup with my last bite of pancake. "Does she know it's our birthdays?" Temari had turned twenty-three last month. I had wanted to go to Suna to spend it with her, but that's when we got sent on that mission. All I managed to send her was a letter and a promise that I would make it up to her next time we met.

"I didn't tell her, if that's what you're asking," Ino claimed. "Gaara and them probably got invitations. I'm sure the nightclub promoters figure if they can get the famous Sand Siblings to attend their opening night, they'll draw a crowd for sure. They know they're frequent guests here," Ino said.

Not frequent enough for my tastes.

"Plus," Ino continued, "Tsunade-sama invited them here for the equinox festival, but they couldn't make it. I heard Gaara said he wanted to see the leaves turn because he's never seen such a thing."

"That doesn't really happen until next month," I said, though already there were a few early trees waxing red and orange amidst the greenery. "Are you sure?"

Ino smiled smugly. "You won't know unless you show up, right?"

I sighed as heavily as I was able. "Fine."

"Yay!" She clapped her hands. "Awesome! I have to go shopping for a new outfit!"

"I'd better give you this now, then," I said. I went over to my desk and took a card out of the drawer. "Um, turn around," I said.

"You haven't even signed it yet?" Chouji exclaimed.

"Shut up, I thought I had another day," I said. Ino obediently turned her back as I scribbled _Happy 20__th__ Birthday, Ino! –Shikamaru_ and slid a rectangle of plastic into the folded paperboard. I put it in the envelope, sealed it, held it out and cleared my throat.

"Oh!" Ino turned, snatched the card from me, and tore it open. "Shikamaru you didn't!" She squealed, clutching the gift card. "Fifty dollars to Kawaii? Thank you!" She launched herself at me and I caught her up in a hug; she was nearly strangling me. "I love that store!"

"I know that's like half a dress, but—"

"How can you afford this?"

"I saved up. You thought I forgot, didn't you?" I accused as she let go of me. I did forget it was this weekend, but I had gotten the gift card a few months ago when my mother reminded me, so I had it on hand.

Ino's face looked like it would split apart from grinning. "Just for this," she said, "I _won't_ make you go shopping with me. Go watch clouds or whatever you want to do."

Yes! "Ino, I love you."

"I know," she chirped. "C'mon, Chouji."

Chouji sputtered. "But, but… I have to get supplies for dinner—"

"We can go grocery shopping afterward. I'll make sure you have plenty of time," Ino said, leaving no room for argument. "Quick, do the dishes and let's get going! I want to get there before all the good dresses are gone! Ooh, I should call Sakura and see if she's gone yet." She scrambled for my phone.

Chouji gave me the sad-puppy look of men everywhere who know they're fated to sit outside a dressing room and lie their ass off all day. "Sorry, man," I said, though I couldn't put much regret into it as I had just dodged that shuriken myself. Whistling, I left my friends in my apartment and made for my favorite lazing-around spot.


	2. Chapter 2

**Shikamaru**

The music was _way_ too loud. Already my head was pounding and I knew that as soon as I stepped into someplace relatively quiet like the men's room, my ears would have a high-pitched whine in them that would keep me awake all night.

Temari was nowhere around, nor either of her brothers, from what I could tell. Half an hour in line (because Ino wanted to be "fashionably late") and half an hour sitting at the bar in front of a glass of the most disgusting thing I've ever tasted (beer, Chouji's drink of choice after his father introduced him to it on _his_ twentieth birthday), and so far I was thinking I should've just stayed home.

This club has got to be the most pretentious thing… we were sitting at the "shinobi" bar, as opposed to the "kunoichi" bar across the way. There was no telling these people that kunoichi is just a gender-distinction within the larger definition of shinobi either. Technically they were saying they had an everyone bar and a ladies-only bar, but judging by the pinups behind the taps and the abundance of what they thought was "manly" paraphernalia, it was an argument I was destined to lose. I didn't even bring up the fact that not everyone in Konoha was a ninja, so they were effectively barring civilians from drinking there. Not that it was the case, but still.

Irritating as it would have been, arguing would have been a welcome diversion at that point.

The line (which, as I said, we spend half an hour in) to get in had wound out into the street. We passed the time by people-watching, Ino pointing out who was wearing an old dress, commenting on who was looking their sluttiest or if she liked someone's hairstyle.

As always, Ino skirted the line between titillation and respectability by wearing a short, silky, light-blue dress that gathered under her bust and flowed out in an a-line, skimming her curves, to end somewhere between hips and knees. She had also decided to do her hair up in a sort of coiling bun that left a few curls trailing. She also had a burn mark on the back of her neck from the curling iron, hastily pasted over with makeup by my mother's inexpert hands.

"I don't think the line is moving," I said.

"It'll move," Ino insisted.

"Do you think they'll have snacks?" Chouji asked hopefully.

"You just ate!" Ino cried.

I ignored their bickering and tried to see in through the windows. The bright lights outside the club thwarted me, though, and all I could see were flashes of colored light and shapes moving in the dark.

"Happy Birthday, Shikamaru-san!" came a shout from in front of me. Yes, a shout. From right in front of me. The crowd wasn't even very loud, but that sort of thing never stopped Rock Lee's exuberance. He was shaking my hand vigorously, though I couldn't remember offering it to him. "One more year in the prime of your glorious youth!" added a voice from behind me. A hearty slap on the back almost knocked me over. Gai had snuck up on me.

Happily the pair of "Konoha's green beasts" had changed out of their usual green leotards for the occasion. Unfortunately they were still matching, and wearing what appeared to be green, bell-bottomed jumpsuits with sequined leaf patterns that matched that of the glowing green neon light above Klub Konoha's door. The lapels on Lee's were almost wider than his shoulders. I stifled a laugh at the thought of Temari swinging her fan and Lee flying through the air, held aloft by his lapels.

Just when I thought it couldn't get worse, they simultaneously grinned. I could almost hear the ding of a hidden bell, and how was there enough light to glint like that off of their teeth?

Ino twitched beside me like she always did when confronted by the power of Gai and Lee's twin weirdness. "Um, thanks," I said. "It's Ino's birthday tomorrow," I added despite the pointy heel that ground into my toe.

"Ino-san! Happy Birthday early to you!" Lee cried, moving from me to give Ino a bone-crunching hug. Her eyes nearly bugged out.

Gai looked like he was tearing up. "Ah, the lovely blossom of youth springs eternal in you! Lee-o, that's enough, I think." Ino had been turning red from lack of oxygen as much as embarrassment. Lee released her and she sucked in a noisy breath.

That was the most exciting thing to happen for the entire half hour. A moment later they spotted someone else they recognized and went to bother them.

Ino ditched us almost immediately when we got inside. She was pissed off that the bouncer had slapped a lime-green plastic bracelet on her wrist to declare she was underage, which was "so unfair!" because "I'll be twenty _tomorrow_!" The man told her to come back at midnight and he'd cut it off for her, to which she muttered something to the effect of cutting something off of _him_, but Chouji and I pulled her into the club before he could figure out what she said.

She whipped a kunai out of apparently nowhere (though I wouldn't put it past her to have a sheath under that dress somewhere) and sawed the bracelet off. "There, now I need a drink," she said, looking around completely undazzled by the epileptic nightmare of flashing colored lights or the incredible din. "Sakura!" she shouted, waving maniacally, and dashed off into the crowd, leaving me and Chouji alone.

"Women," Chouji sighed, proving he spends too much time around me. "Come on," he said, clapping me on the back, "I'll buy you a drink."

And there I sat. Chouji had since run off to try and find a waitress with more chips. I had done a quick but thorough sweep around the place, edging through the gyrating crowd, trying to catch a glimpse of four blonde ponytails.

I ran into Naruto and Sakura, both fairly buzzed, though I know Naruto probably had twice as much as her to get that way, with his zippy fox-powered metabolism. He had his arm heavily around her shoulders, and she was giggling at nothing. "Happy Birthday, Shikamaru!" Sakura trilled.

"Hey, man, where's Temari? Don't tell me she'd skip out on your birthday!" Naruto yelled above the pulsing _unch-unch_ of the house music.

"That's what I'd like to know," I replied. "Who knows? Maybe she had a mission that couldn't wait."

"I have a mission tonight too," Naruto said with a lazy grin. "It's S-rank." Sakura was shaking her head and giggling so much that she was turning as pink as her hair.

I sensed a joke, but played along. "What is it?"

Naruto chuckled before answering. "To get Sakura-chan here into bed with me."

"Shut up!" she shrieked, and slapped him hard enough in the chest to make him choke for a minute. But she was still laughing as though this was their hilarious, private joke.

"Jeez, I'm just kidding!" Naruto laughed, rubbing his chest. "I'm gonna have a handprint there!"

"Serves you right, pervert!" Sakura cackled.

"I wouldn't want to date you, Sakura-chan. I don't want to be a battered partner."

"Oh hey, I'm gonna say hi to Lee!" Sakura decided, untangling herself from Naruto's arm. She must have been drunk to actively seek Lee out. I followed her path with my eyes; it looked like Lee and Gai were tearing up the dance floor with a choreographed number.

Naruto leaned close. I could smell the sharp tang of alcohol on his breath. "Have you seen Hinata anywhere?" he asked.

"No. This isn't really her scene though, is it?" I said. I couldn't imagine sweet, gentle little Hinata gyrating on the dance floor. "I guess Ino was wrong; everybody _isn't_ here."

"Shino already left. He said the vibrations were irritating the bugs. And Kiba didn't want to leave Akamaru alone," Naruto explained.

"I guess Akamaru is too big to be smuggled in Kiba's jacket anymore, huh?"

"That's for sure!" Especially considering Akamaru was big enough to _ride_ on now.

"I'm gonna keep looking," I said.

"Me too. Let me know if you see her! I'll do the same," Naruto shouted and disappeared back into the crowd.

I soon found myself back at the bar, scanning the drinks menu. Apparently men weren't supposed to drink anything that tasted good. Probably the ladies' side had all the colorful, fruity drinks with paper umbrellas, that tasted like a fruit smoothie and hit you like a punch out of nowhere.

"No go on the beer, hon?" the bartender said.

"No," I replied.

"Here, try this," she said, handing me a shot of something yellowish. "On the house, tonight. Kamikaze."

"Divine wind?" What a weird name for a drink.

"Goes down like lemonade," she said with a smile.

I downed it. It did taste like lemonade. Cool.

A commotion at the door turned my head. I almost fell off my bar stool.

It was her.

Okay, technically _them_: Gaara in his full kazekage outfit complete with hat, being fawned over by someone I took to be the manager; Kankurou standing there in a short-sleeved Mandarin shirt (apparently they made him leave the hoodie behind) trying to hide his amazement with a bored façade; and behind them both, scanning the room with her eyes, my desert flower, Temari.

She had ditched the kimono that I so enjoyed plundering for a bare-back cheongsam, black with a red design, a mid-calf skirt that was, so help me, slit on the sides, and a keyhole neckline.

Happy Birthday to me.

Her eyes lit on me and lingered. The corner of her mouth turned up slightly and her right eye half-closed in an almost-wink. I noticed she left her battle fan behind and instead held a small, fold-up fan of black lace, which she snapped open now to flutter air toward her face.

It took every bit of will I had to keep from running over there and sweeping her up, and she knew it. She wasn't going to come running over to me either. We weren't ones for dramatic reunions. Not when most of the fun was in anticipation, long, drawn-out and patient flirting, teasing, move by move like a shougi match you could end in three moves but draw out to see just how good the other person is.

So I wasn't surprised when, after Gaara was whisked away to who knows where, Temari and Kankurou made for the other bar at the opposite side of the room.

Damn, woman. I was already rock-solid just watching the play of colored lights off the muscles in her back as she sauntered away from me as though I wasn't even there. Finally the night was getting interesting. My plan was sliding into place in my head, moves on moves, all branching out into possibilities but reconnecting into one solid path, to my place, dark-lit and happily free of anyone who might stop us this time.

But first I'd show her what I'd learned since last we met. Impress her. This was necessary. Temari is a woman who needs to be constantly won, over and over again. My kind of woman, in other words. Not the clingy type who'll stay no matter how many signals you give her to get lost. Not easy to please. Someone who'll make a lazy ass like me work hard for the slightest shadow of a chance of benefit.

I know, you'd expect the opposite, that I'd want someone requiring no effort whatsoever on my part, because I'm so damned lazy, right? But you forget just how easily I get bored. And I love a challenge.

It occurred to me that she might have a plan in place also, which would force me to make last-minute alterations to my own. That was fine. I realized I was in my thinking posture, fingertips together in an O.

Temari was sitting at the bar across the room, her back to it, leaning against it with her elbows up, one leg crossed over the other, a sandaled toe pointing at me as if to say, "your move." Her eyes stared through me.

I smirked and her eyebrows raised a fraction. It was as if we were the only ones in the room.

"Get ready, babe," I murmured, downing another of those Kamikaze things the bartender had set out for me. "I promise it'll be worth the wait."


	3. Chapter 3

**Temari**

I never thought I'd say this, but I'm so glad I ran into Ino.

I had realized when we arrived in Konoha that my usual plain, black kimono probably wasn't going to cut it at a nightclub, and that as part of the kazekage's entourage (though I hate thinking of Kankurou and myself as "entourage" in relation to Gaara, because it always puts me in the mind of hangers-on and sycophants grubbing for favor) I ought to present myself a little more formally. And a part of me, that womanly part that I usually try to stamp down, was telling me that I should dress up for my boyfriend's birthday even though experience told me that he liked me being myself, the practical, no-frills girl who didn't care what people thought of how she acted _or_ looked.

So I was in this clothing store called Kawaii, which is the last place I thought I'd be, just based on name alone. I have _never_ tried to look "kawaii." Ponytails aside, it just doesn't work for me. I have the sense to know I'm a woman, not a little girl. Besides, who wants to attract pedophiles anyway?

Nothing looked right. I kept getting drawn toward the kimonos, which looked a great deal like what I was used to wearing only in sickly bright colors, far too short, and apparently missing pieces (like sleeves of all things). Yuck.

I was backing out of a dressing stall with an armload of rejects when the door bumped into someone who let out a surprised yelp. Ino. She was rubbing her nose when I looked up. "Sorry," I apologized.

"Temari!" she exclaimed. Instinct took over and before I could stop myself, I had her slammed up against the wall with my hand clamped over her mouth. Her eyes went wide.

"Hsst! Shikamaru isn't shopping with you, is he?" I demanded.

She shook her head as best as she was able and tried to say something but was muffled by my hand. I let go of her and backed a step. "Sorry," I said again. "What was that?"

Ino relaxed. "Shikamaru gave me a $50 gift card to here, so I let him have the day off." I was taken aback by that. "Let him have the day off," as though he was in her employ. But that was replaced by the thought that she _would_ probably have to pay him to get him to shop with her, and I held back a smirk. She continued, "So I dragged Chouji along, but they made him stay outside and finish his soda so he didn't spill on the clothes." She eyed the dresses that were now on the floor, having slid off my arm in our struggle. "You're not buying those are you?"

"No, why?"

"Because they're gross."

"I noticed." I eyed her dress. A-line, empire waist, bright red, tag under the arm.

"You like?" she asked, doing a little twirl. "I need a dress for tonight."

"Do they have that in light blue?" I asked.

Ino's eyes narrowed. "It's mine."

I held up my hands to fend her off. "Whoa, I just meant light blue would look better on you," I said. "I don't think I could carry off a dress like that. It's too…"

"Kawaii?"

"Exactly." I fidgeted. "This shopping thing is new to me. And these clothes… I can't imagine wearing them."

Ino took up the bundle of kimonos and dumped them on a nearby folding table. "Kawaii isn't the store for you, but I know a place. Hold on while I change and pay for this. In blue," she corrected herself and winked at me. "You have a good eye, just not for yourself."

"Excuse me?"

"Don't worry; I'll help you out. I'm the expert."

I looked around, still expecting Shikamaru to pop out of nowhere. "I shouldn't be out too much. I want to… surprised him, you know? I don't want him to know I'm here until he sees me tonight."

"Don't worry, I won't tell," Ino said from inside a dressing stall. She flung the red dress up to drape over the door. "We don't have to worry about running into him anyway; he'll be up on the hill by the practice grounds watching clouds until I get him for dinner."

Blaze, which is the name of the place we ended up, was a bit more my style, though a glance of one of the price tags made me choke. It was dark, with spotlights over each of the racks, of which there were few and widely spaced. The girl at the counter didn't even look up when we came in, much less offer us a greeting. Yes, it was _that_ kind of place.

Sophisticated harlotry, that's what this place sold. Not the "oops I guess I grew a bit since I last wore this dress at ten years old" cute that Ino found at Kawaii, but more the, "Yes, these are my breasts, you like? Do not touch."

I went over to a rack with dresses in a kaleidoscope of colors and started flipping through them. "Get away from those," Ino said suddenly, yanking me towards another rack. "You and kimonos, I swear!"

"I like kimonos," I replied. They're comfortable, loose, practical and they cover things up. Plus it feels like wearing a bathrobe all day; who wouldn't like that?

It occurred to me that Ino was standing there with her thumbs and forefingers together like a picture box, framing me in them.

"The hell are you doing?"

"Measuring you with my mind."

"It looks like you're undressing me with your mind."

"That too."

"Ino…"

I stood there while Ino shuffled along a rack. "Ah! And in your best colors too," she declared, holding up a black and red dress. It was a cheongsam, backless with a keyhole neckline (I could see Ino's face right through it as she proffered the dress). "Try it on!"

In one of the changing stalls I dropped my kimono to the floor and slid the dress on; it was pretty snug, but that made it so I didn't have to wear a bra, an unintended benefit. The only closure was the button at the back of the neck. It had short sleeves, strangely enough, and from the refreshing breeze I realized it was rather short, and slit on the sides for ease of movement… of a hand up one's thigh, that is.

I went out. "I dunno, Ino. I feel so naked…"

"It's perfect!" she squealed. "Look, you have some cleavage, right?" More like enough cleavage to stand a pencil in, but all right. "But it also shows off the muscles in your chest. The bare back shows off the muscles in your back, and I know for a fact Shikamaru _loves_ your legs!"

I raised my eyebrow at her and she coughed. "Um, he tells me a lot. Not everything!" she hurriedly added. "He doesn't kiss and tell. It just, uh, came up one day."

"Uh. Huh."

"Seriously, though, it's like this was made for you. Turn around… oof, look at that butt. I need to train more," Ino sighed. "The fabric even has a fan pattern on it." I hadn't noticed until she said something, but the black silk had an embroidered pattern of red fans and cherry blossoms on it.

I shrugged, glanced at the price tag, and winced.

"Think of it this way: you'll probably never have to buy another dress again."

"Okay," I gave in.

Back in the stall, I indulged in the striking of a few poses, to see the effect. A smile crept its way onto my face, a delicious, wicked smile. I couldn't wait to see Shikamaru's face.

Kimono back on, I went out to see Ino holding yet more objects I would be obligated to spend money on: a pair of high-heeled sandals that somehow perfectly matched the dress, a matching purse that seemed only big enough to hold a small scroll, and what looked like a stick covered in black lace. She snapped it open: it was a fan.

"You can't very well lug _that_ thing around all night, can you?" Ino said, poking at the huge fan I habitually carry strapped to my back. It says a lot that I would carry it with me while shopping in a village I feel comfortably non-threatened in. Truthfully I forgot I was carrying it at all.

"I guess not?"

"They probably wouldn't let you in with it."

I sniffed, "I'm part of the kazekage's entourage."

"Still. You won't be able to dance with an iron fan on your back."

"I don't dance."

"Surely you know how to dance!" Ino laughed. "It was part of _my _training anyway."

"I know _how_. I just _don't_."

Ino shrugged. "I don't think Shikamaru does either."

"I'd be _very_ surprised. Takes too much effort."

Ino piled the items into my arms. "Consider this an investment. If the cost bothers you, give Shikamaru the receipt. He owes you a birthday present anyway."

"I can pay for my own things," I said, and strode up to the counter to dump my stuff unceremoniously in front of the girl there. She licked a thumb and flipped a page of her magazine.

"Ahem."

Lick, flip.

I reached behind me, grasped my fan, and brought it down on the counter with a smack. _That_ got her attention. "I have money. I'm sure you'd like some," I hissed.

The girl was still trembling when we left, my purchases carefully folded and placed in a black plastic bag. I swung it over my shoulder and strolled out, whistling, trailing Ino behind.

She gave me an incredulous look.

"I held back," I said defensively. "If I hadn't, her counter would be in splinters now.

Ino gave a nervous little laugh. "Or her head would be in squishy little chunks against the wall behind her…" She stopped. "I'd better go find out what Chouji's up to. See you tonight. And," she paused to make the motion of pulling a zipper shut across her lips.

"Ino," I said, "thanks for your help."

She grinned and skipped merrily away.

I couldn't help but smile. I guess there are advantages to female friends.

Did I just call Ino my friend?

Wow, Shikamaru is rubbing off on me.


	4. Chapter 4

**Temari**

"You look like a whore," Kankurou told me when he saw me in my new dress. Translation: You are dressed far too hot and I don't want you followed around by skuzzy Konoha guys all night like you _know_ you will be if you wear that dress.

I brandished my middle finger, not bothering to turn from the mirror. Translation: I appreciate your concern but I can take care of myself, little brother.

Yeah, there's a kind of code to how we talk to each other.

"She's trying to impress the Nara," Gaara's deadpan voice cut in from behind where Kankurou leaned against the bathroom doorway. He was in front of the mirror on the wall of our hotel room, adjusting his hat. He stood there with such dignity that I had to stifle a laugh. He just looked so… _cute_ in the full kazekage regalia.

Kankurou was shaking his head at me. "You know he'd be impressed with you no matter what you wore. Or are you trying to make him jealous?"

I rolled my eyes. "I don't think he's capable of jealousy. Not unless he actually caught me with someone." I dabbed on some lipgloss, smearing my lips against the unfamiliar stickiness (I didn't dare trust myself to apply lipstick correctly), then dug out the mascara I bought that afternoon after I parted with Ino.

Kankurou's brow knotted. "You're wearing makeup?"

"You're not?" I replied, matching how incredulous he sounded. I know he had brought his purple kabuki paint with him, but his face was bare. It was strange… he looked almost _naked_. "No one is going to recognize you without it."

"Yeah, well maybe that's a good thing," he muttered under his breath. For his part in making our entourage look respectable, he left his customary hoodie in his bag and was wearing a mandarin-style shirt with short sleeves. It was black with a purple dragon design looping from his back, over his shoulder, and across the chest. I never expected him to go out without his paint, though.

I smirked and brushed mascara onto my lashes, unfortunately also getting my eyelids and under my eyes in the process. Cursing, I dampened a tissue and did my best to repair the damage. I am very unused to this makeup thing. "You do look less scary. Maybe that'll keep Sakura from running away," I teased.

Kankurou's face took on the slightest tinge of pink. "Why do I care if she runs away from me?"

"It occurs to me she's one of the only ones who's seen you without makeup on. And that's when she was _touching your naked chest_." I put the mascara away. There, that was about as much as I could wear without looking totally out of character. Just a little enhancement for a special occasion. _He'd better not like it better this way_, I thought, and scowled. Like hell I'd waste time dolling myself up like this every day.

Kankurou pouted. "She was saving my life at the time," he muttered.

I refused to let up, especially since he was turning such a lovely shade of pink. "Got a touch of the 'oh my savior' infatuation, little brother?"

"Shut up!"

"I always knew you'd go for a ball-buster like Sakura. Maniac on the battlefield, kitten in the sickroom, eh?"

"Cunt!"

I answered him with sloppy smooching noises.

"And _I_ always thought you'd go for someone with ambition, not some lazy-ass, soft-edged _deer farmer_," he spat.

I sighed and explained, "Mom told me never to fall in love with an ambitious man."

Kankurou looked bitchslapped. "What? When was this?"

"You were too young to remember," I said as I cleaned up the counter. "It was toward the end of her… pregnancy with Gaara." I almost slipped and said "life." "I went over to her one day, when she was sitting by the window." I didn't look at Kankurou, instead focusing on the design on my makeup bag. "I asked her why she looked so sad, but she didn't answer me. She just sighed, and looked right into my eyes and said, 'Temari, never fall in love with an ambitious man.'"

I looked up. Kankurou was leaning against the doorframe, looking down at the ground as though deep in thought. "It's not like I sought out the laziest ass in Konoha, though," I amended. "It just turned out that way."

"Kind of hard to find lazy asses in Suna."

I laughed somewhat bitterly. "If it's a man in Suna trying to get my attention, you can bet he has at least one ambition."

Kankurou frowned. "To marry his way into the family."

"Bingo, little bro." I double-checked myself in the mirror to see if I missed any smudges. "And Shikamaru's not in it for that. You can be sure of it."

"I still don't like him," Kankurou muttered. I recognized the tone of it, though. It was the same tone I had back when I was denying any feelings for Shikamaru to my teasing brothers, the tone that said, "He's starting to grow on me and I hate it."

After years of being siblings only by birth, it's hard to start admitting we actually care about each other and what makes us happy.

Gaara broke the spell by popping up behind Kankurou and saying, "We're going to be late." He scrutinized Kankurou. "You're not wearing makeup."

"You have a stupid hat," Kankurou retorted.

Gaara blinked once.

"Let's just get going," I cut in to break the tension, trying to pull on the damn high heels that would probably cause me to twist an ankle by the time the night was over.

"Yes, let's," Gaara said, leading the way. "We will be… trendily tardy."

"Fashionably late, you mean," I corrected him.

"Yes." He straightened his hat. "I like my stupid hat."

"It looks very regal on you," I assured him. I punched Kankurou to keep him from saying anything.

"Bitch," he muttered under his breath.

Gaara squared his shoulders. "Let's go," he said, and led us out.

* * *

I wanted to punch them both when I saw the line. "We're never getting in," I mumbled, but as we approached, the crowd parted for us all the way to the door. It was just like the old days only with less cowering and fewer rueful glares.

The bouncer didn't even card us, though he said something into his little ear-mounted radio as we passed. Not two steps into the door we were assaulted by a fey-looking twig of a man in a sparkling tuxedo. "Kazekage-sama! We are so honored to be graced with your presence at our fine establishment!" The man was bobbing so much it was making me sick. Kankurou sighed while the little twit continued to fawn over Gaara. Gaara weathered it with his usual stony expression. I scanned the crowd for a glimpse of stalk-like, dark-brown ponytail.

There, at the bar with the blue lights, mouth slightly agape, sat Shikamaru. Apparently the dress was working. I made a mental note to buy Ino dinner sometime. I let the corner of my mouth curve upward and my right eyelid droop. He'd appreciate a lazy smile, a lazy wink. The fan was in my left hand; I snapped it open and fluttered it. Unfortunately, since it was lace it didn't push the air around much. And this place was so stuffy too.

He had managed to change out of his usual uniform, which he usually wears even on his days off, and into a slick, black shirt that looked incredible on him. I probably had Ino to thank for that too. Dinner and a movie, then.

He looked away after a moment, pretending to scan the crowd, his usual expression of boredom on his face. But his eyes slid my way again and the corner of his mouth curled up too.

"The VIP room is this way. Hokage-sama is awaiting you there," the little man was saying. He looked at me and Kankurou and hesitated for an instant before adding, "Of course your siblings are invited too!"

"No thank you," I said in the coldest tone I could manage. "I think we'll rub shoulders with the hoi-polloi down here."

"Yeah, what she said," Kankurou agreed.

"Well, let me know if you change your mind or need _anything_ at all," the twit purred. He led Gaara away.

I grabbed Kankurou's arm and steered him to the bar on the opposite side of the room from Shikamaru. "I thought you'd want to sit with your little boyfriend," Kankurou said.

"He can wait," I replied, seating myself on a bar stool but facing away from the bar. I crossed my legs, the ones Ino said Shikamaru loved so much, and pointed one foot toward him. _Your move,_ I thought. Shikamaru had his hands in his thinking posture, fingertips together. He smirked. I raised my eyebrows.

"So, what'd you get him for his birthday, eh Temari?" Kankurou asked. He waggled his eyebrows. "Gonna let him do some Kage-Fuck-e No Jutsu on you, eh? Eh?"

I snapped my fan shut and he jumped. I considered the little prop. In the hands of a skilled kunoichi, a hand fan is just as dangerous a weapon as a war fan. "Kanky," I purred dangerously, "did you bring the lube?"

"What?" He recoiled further. "What are you—here? Why would I--?"

"Too bad." I clucked my tongue. "Looks like I'll have to fuck you _dry_ with this." Baby brother paled as I started a low, sinister chuckle in the back of my throat.

The bartender, a femme-looking pretty boy wearing a leaf g-string and little else, chose that moment to swish our way. "Hey," Kankurou beckoned, probably thankful for the distraction, "I'll have a—"

"I'm sorry," the man lisped in a tone that clearly said he wasn't sorry at all, "this is the ladies' bar. You'll have to order over there." He indicated the blue-lit bar where Shikamaru was sitting. I realized that he wasn't kidding, noticing all the tackily _girly_ décor the bar was festooned with.

Kankurou had the dude by his pink sparkly bow tie. "Listen, punk-ass—" he began.

"Sit down," I ordered. For a moment more he glowered at the bartender, who was practically pissing himself, then released the bowtie. It snapped back in place.

I looked over my shoulder at the bartender and slid a fiver across the bar. "Bring my dear brother here the fruitiest drink on the menu." He snatched up the bill, stuffed it in the side of his g-string, and set to work.

"This place sucks already," Kankurou grumbled. His eyes had lit on the dance floor, where among the gyrating crowd I could see Sakura and Naruto performing a rather nasty grind. Holy shit, I didn't think those kids were even interested in each other, considering last I knew she was all Sasuke-crazy. Ah well; drink and wild music brings out some hidden tendencies, I guess.

That little Uzumaki slut had his shirt off even; he was whipping Sakura's ass with it. Happily the bartender slid Kankurou's drink over and I didn't have to see whether the runt decided to get even more naked.

"Don't worry, this'll make it all better," I said, pushing the drink over to Kankurou. He eyed it dubiously and took a sip.

"Cunt!" he spat at me. "He didn't put anything in this!"

I held back a laugh as he sniffed the ridiculous drink. It was bright pink, served in a pink sugar-rimmed glass that mimicked a woman's curves, bearing a skewer with, I kid you not, half a banana, tipped with a maraschino cherry, thrust through a pineapple ring.

"It tastes pretty good though," Kankurou admitted, sucking down half of it at a gulp.

Poor Kanky. You see, I'd managed a glance at the specialty drinks menu, so I knew what this was. They called it an "Icha-Icha," I presume in honor of Jiraiya's adult novel series. And it _did_ have something in it, that something being seven different kinds of rum, most of them fruit-flavored. So while Kankurou couldn't taste it, it would surely _hit_ him. It'd hit him harder than my battle fan ever could, plus it would be more fun to watch.

Kankurou had finished his first Icha-Icha and had started on a second when Sakura flopped down in the seat next to him. "Oh, hi Kankurou!" she panted. Naruto had apparently given her a workout; she was gleaming with sweat, and her dress was sticking to her. Kankurou definitely noticed; he almost choked on the cherry he had been poking around in his mouth for the past few minutes (he let me have the banana, which I ate _oh so slowly_ while Shikamaru watched from across the room, biting his lip).

"Hey, Sakura," Kankurou replied, his voice dropping an octave. I choked back a laugh.

"Decided not to wear the paint today, huh?" she said. Her eyes were unfocused and I could smell sour apple pucker from where I sat. "Hi Temari!" she said, and gave me a fluttery little wave.

"Hey," I replied, noticing Sakura was the only one who hadn't referred to Kankurou's "makeup."

"Uh, yeah, you know, I figured it'd be sweaty here, it'd melt and look weird," Kankurou lied.

"Huh, that's funny. How do you keep it from doing that in Suna? It's pretty hot and sweaty there too." Heh, even buzzed the girl was sharp.

Kankurou fumbled for a minute. "It's um, a dry heat," he said weakly.

"Oh…" Sakura took what looked to be a sour apple martini from the bartender. She sipped at it. "I think you look good without it."

"Really?"

"Yeah," she said somewhat dreamily, resting her cheek on the back of her hand. "It's easier to see what your face looks like, you know, the line of your jaw and stuff." She reached out and traced Kankurou's jawline with a finger. I could see his adam's apple bob as he gulped.

"So, um," Kankurou tried, gulping from his own drink to buy some time. "Uh, speaking of Suna, did I ever thank you for saving my life?"

Sakura smiled. "It was my pleasure," she replied. "That was years ago though."

"Haven't seen you around since."

"I haven't had reason to be back."

"You should visit sometime."

"Yeah? Last time I was there it was so rushed, what with the mission and all. You'll have to show me around," Sakura said with a cute little smile.

I smirked to myself. I know where _that_ sort of thing leads.

"Sure, no problem," Kankurou said, relaxing visibly. He drained his drink. I motioned to the bartender to mix up another. "So, you're here with Naruto, eh?"

Sakura giggled. "Well, kinda-sorta, but he found out Hinata wasn't here. I think he decided to storm the Hyuuga compound and drag her out."

"So," Kankurou said, "does that mean you're free for a dance?"

"Are you asking?" Sakura said, low and sultry.

"You don't know how to dance!" I scoffed.

"Well, I guess you'll have to teach me then," Kankurou practically _purred_ to Sakura, getting somewhat unsteadily to his feet as he took her hand. Hah, I knew it'd take a few drinks to make him relax to the point where he could be smooth with the ladies.

Don't mistake me here; I wasn't trying to get Kankurou some action out of kindness or pity. I just knew if I didn't get him out of my hair, I'd be babysitting the grouchy prick all night long. And that was _not_ how I wanted to spend my evening.

The bartender set down the drink, but Kankurou and Sakura were already getting friendly under the flashing lights. So I pulled it over and had a sip. Kankurou was right; it was good, and it tasted like nothing more than a cold-fruity drink of the kind that is so welcome on a hot, thirsty day.

That's when I felt a tug.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's note:** This chapter contains a refreshing hint of lime.

* * *

**Neji**

Look, it's not as if I'm some sort of boring, uptight killjoy, all right? Maybe _I_ wanted to go to the club, maybe _I_ wanted to party with my… comrades and celebrate Shikamaru's birthday, but _I_ was stuck _babysitting_ my cousins while my uncle was away on business.

Hanabi was practicing her calligraphy, Hinata was reading some magazine or comic book or something, and I was studying up on weapons techniques in case Tenten decided she wanted to train sometime this weekend. Just in case! I knew _she_ went to the club, because up until five minutes before it opened she was on the phone begging me to ditch the girls and go with her. So likely she wouldn't be in any shape to do anything tomorrow.

It was silent, so perfectly silent that I could hear the waterspout clacking in the garden. Then somewhere a door slid back and Naruto's voice boomed, "Oi! Hinata!"

Hinata jumped, turning preemptively pink. I cursed. I kept telling my uncle we should station guards outside the compound but he always says I'm being stupid and that's what the branch family is for. Goddamn prick…

"Don't you ever fucking knock?" I snapped as Naruto's tramping footsteps drew closer.

"Hinata," he said as he entered the room. Hinata squeaked and I soon saw why; the spaz was topless. He was swaying slightly where he stood, like a tree in the breeze, and his eyes had that misty look about them that said he'd been drinking.

"Where's your shirt?" I sputtered.

He furrowed his brow. "I must have lost it, _Mom,_" he retorted. Hanabi giggled and I gave her a death glare. Naruto sat on the couch next to Hinata, _indecently_ close, almost sitting _right on her_. I have to admit, my cousin's getting better; she didn't swoon. "Hey, Hina…" he slurred, putting an arm around her shoulders and squeezing her even closer.

"Yes, N-naruto?" she whispered back, her pale eyes wide. She _is_ getting better; she was looking right at him. There was a time when she wasn't able to meet his gaze without being overwhelmed.

"Come out to the club with me. It's a fun time. I want you there, Hina."

"I—I can't," she stammered.

Before she could go into reasons, I heard a door slam open again. "Oi, Neji!" this time. Tenten… I froze.

"Why even have doors with everyone barging in?" Hanabi cried in a mocking imitation of what I might have said.

Tenten stumbled into the room. I barely recognized my teammate, the tomboy I practiced with. She was wearing a white, button-down shirt _unbuttoned_ and tied under her breasts; a short, black, pleated skirt that barely counted as a thick belt; knee-high socks in bright red; and shiny, black Mary Janes. Her hair, usually up in two little buns like panda ears, was in two high-set pigtails instead. I had no idea her hair was that long. I never saw it out of the buns.

I eyed the flat, pale expanse of her stomach, down to the curve of her hipbone, and swallowed, hard.

She eyed me, draped against the doorway, rolling a pink lollipop along her lips. Her tongue caressed the round bulb of candy before drawing it completely into her mouth with a slurp.

"You're pitchin' a tent, nii-san," Hanabi giggled.

I rearranged my book. "Ten…ten?"

"Neji," she breathed. Oh my…

She floated over to me, knocked my book aside, and sat on my lap. Her skirt rode up to show little white cotton panties, barely a patch held on by string. I officially stopped breathing at this point. Hanabi was in hysterics, while Naruto and Hinata just gawked.

Tenten threw the lollipop over her shoulder, leaned in close and reached her arms around and behind me to slide the tie off of my ponytail. Then she seized my hair with both hands, running her fingers through it, brushing it against her face, draping it around both of us so we were hidden beneath the curtain of it, all the while giving these little breathy moans until I could barely stand it.

"Neji," she breathed again, and I could smell alcohol and something sweet and sour. She was looking down at me. I was eye-level with her small but perfectly round breasts. Her nipples were visible through the thin, white fabric.

"Tenten, you're not just drunk, are you," I realized. Her pupils were huge.

"No," she giggled. "I was all sad 'cause you didn't go, and this guy was just _handing_ out these pills…" She bent to press her lips against the X seal on my forehead. Her tongue slid out and traced it with two slow flicks.

"Oh shit, you're on Ecstasy or something…" I realized.

"It might have been that. I was dancing, and the lights were just so pretty… but I wanted to feel your hair. It always looks so soft… I just wanted to touch it… I just wanted to touch you…"

I heard Hinata say, "Um… Naruto-kun, maybe we _should_ go."

"All right!" he cheered.

"Wait! Don't leave me alone with _them_!" I heard Hanabi yell and the stamping of feet as she ran after them. Before I could shout to them, or go after them, Tenten's lips were on mine and all thought of flight left my mind.

She slid something into my mouth and I swallowed without thinking.

A chill went up my back. "Tenten, what did you just slip me?" I asked warily.

Tenten giggled again. "I just want you to feel how I feel," she purred and came down for another kiss.

"But Tenten," I protested between kisses, "I already feel the way you feel."

She sat back a little then. My whole body was hot, from the excitement and from finally admitting that yes, I do feel _that way_ about her. Tenten smiled and a little thrill went through me. "Neji!" she said softly, seeming surprised and touched by my words.

"I thought it would be bad for the team if we—" I began, but she put her fingers to my lips.

"Neji, shut up," she said gently, fingering the knot of her shirt.

As Lee would say, "Ossu!"


	6. Chapter 6

**Shikamaru**

Temari was caught in a web of my shadow strings, twisting and writing in the flashing lights. I could feel her struggle, not against me, but to keep up with me, with the twitches of my fingers that pulled her this way and that. It was like that one night in Suna when she put on some music and insisted I dance with her; she kept trying to lead. "The man is supposed to lead," I'd said, and she'd replied with the usual, "You and your man and woman bullshit!" She tried, but she seemed unable to figure out how to read my body to find out which way I was going, which was amazing considering she was such a pro at it in battle. In the end she tripped over me too much, got frustrated, and ordered me out of her room.

I figured this time I'd make it easy on her.

I'd intended to use this for something else, but when an opportunity presents itself…

It was more subtle than the Kage Mane no Justu. Sure, we could mirror each other all night, but to actually choreograph something meant I had to be able to move her without moving myself. Borrowing a little of Kankurou's style, I modified my jutsu to turn Temari into my puppet.

Plus, this way I could sit and watch for awhile.

Temari's initial irritation and embarrassment seemed to disappear after a time, or else she was holding it back. I twitched a pinkie and she rolled a shoulder back, then the other, thrusting out her magnificent chest. She shot me a look that was equal parts sultry and dangerous.

"Let go," I mouthed to her. "I'll catch you."

I could feel her go slack. Now she was pliant, trusting me not to let her go. Temari, who always had to be in control, who didn't know how to follow, who trusted no one.

Now I could move her feet more easily, make her serpentine her hips. There was a small circle around her now of people who had stopped their own dancing to watch her. They still moved to the beat but were clapping in time, hooting and whistling. Kankurou gawked, leaning on Sakura for support. Sakura was bouncing up and down smacking her hands together. Kankurou looked from his sister to me with an expression that said, "You copied me!"

I moved Temari in a spin that ended with her holding her hand out toward me. She beckoned with her eyes. I guess she _was_ learning to follow my lead.

I slid off my stool and sauntered over to her. Now came the interesting part; controlling her and dancing somewhat competently myself.

"You tricky bastard," she said when I drew close. I was almost in reach when I slid in behind her. Another song started up as if on cue, a slow-moving one. I could feel her trying to turn, but I kept her facing away.

"You love it," I said in her ear as I slid a hand down her hip and just barely under her skirt, feeling her smooth, sweat-slick skin and the muscles beneath.

Her hand slid down over mine and her ass bumped back against me. Her other hand slid up along the side of my face.

I spun her around to face me.

My hand found the small of her back, hers the back of my neck. The song pounded on. Anyone who was wondering if something was going on between us sure had their answer now.

We were inches apart, me moving closer to her as she drew back, then her forward as I stepped away. Back and forth, give and take, the dance we'd been dancing since we met.

I was so close that I could smell her, sweat and fruit and the chemicals of new fabric, plus that spicy something she always seemed to smell of. Her dress pushed up her cleavage but also showed the smooth muscles up to her collarbone. You can see ribs and sometimes breastbone on a lot of Konoha girls; girls in Suna can't afford to starve themselves for vanity.

Our eyes were locked. Once again it was like there was no one else in the room. Her lips were dark pink and slick with gloss. Her gray eyes gleamed like silver.

I let her have a little slack. Her arms were around my neck, mine around her waist as she pressed herself against me. Her breathing was short in my ear. My thoughts went whirling to my bed, wondering what noises she'd make, if she'd sweat like this, her muscles trembling with effort like this. She slid one knee up against the outside of my thigh and I gripped her leg, feeling the muscles tighten.

The song ended and I dropped the jutsu without any other warning. Temari stumbled and I caught her. It was easy enough to lean a little and kiss her.

She stuck her tongue in my mouth. She tasted like strawberries.

It was a minute or two before the howling crowd brought us to our senses and we broke apart, breathing heavy. Temari's face was slick with sweat. She had a mascara smudge under one eye. "Makeup?" I asked, and wiped it away. She put on makeup for me? She shrugged.

"Buy me a drink," she demanded sweetly. I nodded and led her back to the bar.

"Two more kamikaze things," I told the bartender.

"Divine wind?" Temari asked.

"Lemonade," I said, lifting the glass the bartender handed over. "Happy Belated Birthday."

"Happy Birthday to you," Temari said, lifting her glass. We downed them. "You're right. It does taste like lemonade," she remarked, setting it down. She crossed her legs and held on to her knee.

"So," I couldn't resist asking, "are you impressed?"

"Tricks like that and you're still not a jounin?" she teased.

"Actually," I said smugly, "I made jounin last month." Her eyebrows shot up and I smirked.

"Is that why you couldn't make it for my birthday?" she said, pretending to pout.

"It was after that mission. As for your birthday, I'll make it up to you," I promised.

"Ooh," she purred. "More surprises." The bartender set down another pair of kamikazes. Temari toyed with hers.

"Nice dress, speaking of surprises," I said, giving her an appreciative look up and down.

"Thank you. Thank Ino, actually," she said.

"I will when I see her next." I looked around. "I wonder where she is."

"Are you worried?" Temari asked with a touch of jealousy so slight I almost missed it.

"No," I assured her. I raised my little glass. I was starting to feel these little lemony shots. "To my desert flower, the beautiful and deadly Flower of Suna," I said. I'm not usually one for poetic flourishes but she seemed touched by it.

"To Konoha's most hardworking slacker," Temari said, raising her glass. We downed it. She looked past me and laughed. "Holy hell, look at those two. Think we gave them ideas?"

Not to be outdone, I guess, Sakura had her legs wrapped around Kankurou's waist, he was supporting her ass with one hand on each cheek, and they appeared to be devouring each other starting with the lips.

"_I_ didn't teach him to dance like that," Temari said.

"I should hope not." She rolled her eyes at me.

"I'm surprised he can still stand, much less hold her up," Temari marveled.

"Why's that?" I asked. "Did he have a lot to drink?"

"Two Icha-Ichas that I saw, and probably more since then."

"Ouch." Kankurou misstepped and they both went tumbling to the dance floor, Sakura on top. "There they go," I said. Temari shook her head. "Where is Gaara, by the way?" I asked. "I haven't seen him since you came in."

"I don't know," Temari admitted. "The twit at the door said something about a VIP room."

So he was in there with Tsunade, possibly Jiraiya, who were not only legendary sannin but legendary drunkards. "Good luck, Gaara," I breathed.

* * *

**Gaara**

How undignified.

The hokage had obviously started drinking before I got there. The little man who met me at the door handed me off to Shizune, Tsunade's assistant. She was standing at the door clutching her little pig. I forget its name; Bon-Bon or something like that. It took her three tries before Tsunade and Jiraiya stopped guffawing long enough to notice that she was trying to get their attention.

"Tsunade-sama!" Shizune urged. "The kazekage is here!"

I didn't know whether to expect a formal state welcome, but I surely didn't get one. Tsunade didn't even stand up, not that she appeared capable of it. She was relaxing on a couch, her feet up, within reach of the table where a bottle of sake stood next to two tiny cups. Jiraiya seemed more comfortable on the floor, leaning against another couch. He was wearing the hokage hat. Backwards.

They greeted me like soldiers greet each other in a tavern back in Suna. "Gaara!" Tsunade crowed, "c'mon in!" She tipped another cup of sake into her mouth. Shizune gave me an apologetic smile. The pig in her arms made a scornful noise.

I removed my hat and sat on the couch across from Tsunade while Shizune hovered nervously. "Greetings, Hokage-san, Jiraiya-san," I said.

"Finish the story, Jiraiya!" Tsunade urged.

"Okay so then the girl says, 'But Jiraiya-sama, that was my aunt!'" The two howled with laughter. Shizune looked at me and shrugged.

"Shizune! Pour Gaara some sake!" Tsunade snapped.

"I don't drink sake," I replied. Though part of me knew this was probably impolitic, I wasn't exactly the only person in the room acting that way.

Jiraiya laughed. "He's underage, Tsunade!"

"Actually," I corrected, "I turned twenty in January."

Shizune stepped forward. "Would you like some tea?" she asked.

"Yes." She disappeared.

"What do you think of this place, Gaara?" Jiraiya asked.

I opened my mouth to respond, but Tsunade cut in, "What kind of bar doesn't have pachinko machines? Are you a pachinko player, Gaara?"

"No," I answered.

"What do you do for fun?"

That one stumped me. "I… don't know," I admitted. "I do work."

"Ugh, work," Tsunade groaned, waving a hand. "Shizune's always trying to get me to do work too. But," she leaned forward and stage-whispered, "yesterday I pretended to work and spent three hours picking numbers for the Lucky Seven drawing instead!"

Shizune had chosen to return with the teapot at that moment. "Tsunade-sama!" she gasped, scandalized.

"Oop!" Tsunade's eyes went wide and she sat back against the couch and began trying to whistle innocently. Shizune gave her a dirty look and poured me a cup of tea, leaving the pot on the table.

The little pig was on the floor now. "Hweh!" she uttered, seeming to glare at the hokage. I noticed she wore a little pearl necklace. How strange.

"Where'd all the girls go?" Jiraiya asked, peering under the couch as though one had slipped under there.

"They left. They said they were sick of being groped," Shizune grunted.

"Aw…" Jiraiya pouted. "Well go get some more. And some more sake." He clapped his hands together.

"I'm getting a damn drink," Shizune muttered under her breath, and left, letting the door slam loudly behind her.

Tsunade blinked. "What crawled up in her, eh?" She laughed.

"Probably nothing in a long time," Jiraiya joked. They both guffawed while I sipped my tea, wondering what Kankurou and Temari were up to.

"We gotta loosen you up, kid," Tsunade said wryly, and got unsteadily to her feet. I set my tea down just in time to be almost thrown off the couch as she flopped down beside me and threw an arm around my shoulders. If I had my sand with me, it probably would have put up a shield around me; that's how uncomfortable I was. She leaned her face in close to mine; her breath almost gagged me. "Let's play a game, hmm?"

"What kind of game?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady. My skin crawled.

"Drinking game, of course," Jiraiya said, throwing the hokage hat like a shurikan at the gong by one of the doors. It bonged. A serving girl fell through the door as if she had been pushed. She recoiled upon seeing Jiraiya's grin. "More sake," he ordered. She nodded and rushed back through the door.

"Shizune took my cards, my mahjong set, and my dominoes but she didn't get these," Tsunade said, reaching down past her neckline. I looked away. When I looked back, she had a pair of dice in her hand. "What do you say? Loser has to drink?"

I didn't seem to have a choice in the matter.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's note:** It's the lemon we've all been waiting for! I hope I did a good job...

* * *

**Temari**

Shikamaru was telling me about the mission he, Chouji, and Ino were on last month. "Perfect execution, last man was down, we were _for the first time ever_ going to just sneak out without a fight, and as we're edging along the top of the wall right over the guards' heads, I hear a crinkle of plastic."

"No!"

"I'll never know where the hell Chouji found or had been hiding chips, but—"

"He was snacking at a time like that?" Chouji always seemed like a nice enough guy but if he was that incredibly unprofessional—

"No, he just had them on his person, and happened to move in such a way—"

"That's unforgivable!" I cried. "We're supposed to wrap our kunai so they don't clank and he has _snacks_ secreted away?"

Shikamaru's brow furrowed. "Can I tell the damn story, please?"

"Temari!" Kankurou shouted. I turned around to see him and Sakura, leaning on each other and making for the door. "You might want to find somewhere else to stay tonight!" Kankurou had a wolfish grin on his face and Sakura was giggling like she couldn't stop. They were palming each other's asses. Real cute.

"Stay the fuck off my bed, Kankurou!" I screamed back over the music, getting to my feet and reaching for a fan that wasn't there. Damn it! My fan was still back there too!

"Ha ha!" he laughed, and stuck out his tongue. "I'm gonna push all three of 'em together!" They left, roaring with laughter.

I sat back down, seething. So much for that idea.

"Hey," Shikamaru said, nudging me with his shoulder, "you can stay with me."

"It's not that," I admitted. "It's just… well I wanted you to open your birthday present," I said, giving him a meaningful look. "So unless your parents out of town or something…"

He gave me a crooked smile and said, "I have my own place now."

I started to tingle, thinking of the possibilities, realizing just what was within my grasp. "Roommates?" I asked warily.

"None. Just me. And you," Shikamaru said, covering my hand with his. Oh how just the touch of his hand excited me. For months I was alone in Suna, laying in my bed at night, touching myself and pretending it was him. Every day I wished I could touch his hand, even if just for a moment.

"What the fuck are we sitting around here for, then?" I asked in a throaty whisper.

"Hey," he said to the bartender. "I want to settle up."

"It's taken care of," she said, and cocked her head to the side. Further down the bar, Chouji gave us a thumbs-up. The scorn I felt upon hearing the potato chip revelation melted away into a feeling of goodwill towards Chouji.

We got up and left, hands still entwined, my blood thumping through my body as we left the music and noise and lights for the darkness outside.

The night air was cool after the heat of the club. Shikamaru led me down darkened streets, not even pausing to steal a kiss or embrace like we had during previous visits. We'd waited long enough.

We barely got through the door before I was on him, tasting his lips, my hands rumpling his clothing. I wanted to tear his shirt off with my teeth, to bite off the buttons one by one. We blindly groped and stumbled our way to the bedroom and fell on the bed with a sigh. I was reaching behind my neck for the button to my dress when he grabbed my wrists and stopped me.

"I thought you said you'd let me unwrap my gift," he reminded me. I dropped my hands and gave him a wry smile. I was straddling him, pressing myself against the hard lump in his pants. Shikamaru pushed himself up, reached a hand behind me, and flicked the button open. He peeled the front of the dress down to expose my chest. With a hand on my back, he pulled me forward so he could swirl his tongue around one of my nipples.

A sweet burning spread through me and I felt myself grow moist. He rubbed my nipple with his lips, nibbling at it, taking it in his mouth to suckle it. "Oh god," I breathed, and rubbed the other one between my fingertips. With my other hand I reached down to rub my fingers along the bulge in his pants. I slipped my fingers past his waistband and stroked him. He made a noise in his throat and pulled back, giving my nipple a parting flick with his tongue.

I expected him to take off my dress, but he didn't. Instead he slid both hands up my thighs, under those easy-access slits, and hooked a fingertip through each side of my panties.

"What're you doing?" I murmured.

"Shhh…" he whispered and slid my panties down. I lifted my knees off the bed so he could slide them past and off. Then he grabbed onto my ass with both hands and slid himself under me until his face disappeared beneath the edge of my skirt.

A hot, wet tongue pressed against my flesh and I shuddered. He teased apart the folds, his warm breath tickling me. Two fingers slid in as he swirled his tongue around my clit. I drew in a shuddering breath through clenched teeth. "Sh-shika-mmmm" the last letter faded into a hum of pleasure as I gave up on forming coherent words.

I pulled back after a few minutes, and realized I was panting. "Something wrong?" he asked, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand.

I shook my head. "Don't make me come before you're…you're…"

"I'm what?" he teased. He wanted me to say it.

"Before you're inside," I breathed.

He smiled then, sensual and smug. I slid down and unbuttoned his pants. "I'll wipe that look off your face," I promised and, gripping the zipper pull with my teeth, tugged it down.

"Oooh," he said, still with that self-satisfied look, and licked his fingers.

I shook my head again and pulled his pants down, boxers and all. I ran my tongue along his penis from the base to the tip and was rewarded with a low hum of pleasure. I glanced up; he was laying there with his hands behind his head in the same damn posture he watched clouds in. His eyes were closed and he had a wide smile on his face.

"What are you, getting serviced?" I scolded.

"What? I'm enjoying myself. You've never used your mouth before."

I swirled my tongue around the tip. He tasted faintly salty. Shielding my teeth with my lips I sucked him in, inch by inch. He groaned as I reached the base, my tongue sliding up and down as I went. "Oh, Temari…" he breathed. "Don't make _me_ come before—" he broke off in an echo of what I had said. He brushed my cheek with his fingertips.

After a few minutes I drew back. "You haven't finished unwrapping your gift," I pointed out.

"You're right," Shikamaru said and sat up. He reached out and slid the dress the rest of the way down; I wiggled my hips to help it off, and tossed it to the floor. He still had his shirt on. I decided not to ruin it after all and instead unbuttoned it carefully and discarded it.

We'd never been totally naked together before. Shikamaru had been nude while I had been clothed and massaging him, and we'd explored beneath each other's clothes before, but we never had the time, place, or opportunity to bare it all.

I wondered what he thought of me. I always felt I look better with clothes on, with all the extra bulk smoothed and flattened and camouflaged. I have plenty of muscle but I know I'm not as slim as most of the girls he knows.

It was the most vulnerable moment of my life aside from our chuunin exam when he held me motionless in his shadow, at his mercy, and let me go. It wasn't as though I hadn't been naked before a man before, but they were men I didn't really care about, men who were good for an evening of lust but whose opinions of me I didn't worry about.

Shikamaru looked up at me, silently, and I forced myself to keep my arms at my sides instead of crossing them girlishly over my chest.

"My desert goddess," he whispered, and held out his arms.

I lay down atop him, enjoying the delicious sensation of being skin to skin, closer than we'd ever been. For a few minutes we just held and touched each other, drawing it out, though we were both so ready to begin the main event that it showed in the way we strained against each other, the frantic sounds we made. I was aching with the need to be filled, not even to climax but just to feel him inside, completing the circuit.

Finally, Shikamaru pulled away and turned to rummage through his drawer. He handled the condom as if he'd never seen one before. "Don't use your teeth!" I warned as he, frustrated, was about to bite the corner of the packet and tear. I snatched the package from him and tore it open carefully. "Here, I'll do it," I said.

"Trust the expert," he replied as I unrolled it down over his penis.

We hesitated then, knowing we were on the threshold of something, that there was no turning back from this. We were still frantic with desire but almost afraid too. Then I bent to kiss him and all hesitation disappeared.

I straddled him and guided him inside, slowly, sighing with not only pleasure but relief. I rested there a moment, not wanting to rush this, wanting to soak up every detail of how it felt. Then I began to move, slowly at first. It had been a while for me, and I was tight and somewhat tender despite our foreplay. Shikamaru reached out as though hypnotized, laying his hands on my hips, guiding me. "I can't believe we're really doing this," he gasped.

"Believe it," I said. He had an expression on his face that I'd seen only a few times, the expression a virgin gets his first time inside a woman, that awestruck look like he's seen the face of a goddess. Other times I'd noticed the look and marveled at it, but this time I felt a swell of pride knowing that _I_ made him make that face, _I_ was the one he'd remember even if we parted, and that no matter how many times he smirked at me or rolled his eyes I'd remember that expression for the rest of my life.

* * *

**Shikamaru**

It was a lot different from a hand, that's for sure.

That doesn't do it justice. Words don't really do it justice. I could say that Temari was soft and slick, warm and squishy, and the way she _squeezed_… well even that couldn't really express just how incredible it felt. Not just because of how it felt so good but how much I loved her at that moment, not just how much I wanted her and loved doing this, but how I couldn't imagine anyone else I'd rather be inside.

Her thighs were shuddering. She was leaning slightly forward, supporting herself on her hands, her lower lip between her teeth. I hoped she wasn't getting tired. We'd been at it for a little while but I wanted it to go on the rest of the night. She looked and sounded almost like she was in pain. I thought back to the times we sparred, and how similar the noises were: the panting, the grunts, the little suppressed cries of effort and pain. Something told me I'd never be able to spar with her again without my mind going in that direction.

I cupped a breast in my hand, rubbed my thumb over the nipple, and she let out a little breathy moan like she was trying to hold back the sound. I imagined her in Suna, on her bed, her fingers inside herself and her biting her lip trying not to let the whole place know what she was about. The thought was almost enough to make me come; I pushed it away. I didn't want to be what Ino referred to as a "minute-man." I kept feeling the pleasure build almost to a peak, and I kept pushing it down, trying to hold out. It became like waves, rising and receding with every lick of her tongue against my earlobe, every nibble on my neck, every nail scratching down my arms or across my chest.

We were both sweating. I wished I'd opened the window to let the air in, the noises out. I didn't care if the whole fucking village heard us.

"C'mon," I whispered, raising myself up on my elbows so I could reach around her waist and pull her closer. I took a nipple in my mouth, swirled my tongue around it, nibbled it with my lips, teased it. Temari panted harder, her movements becoming jerkier, more frantic. "Wake up the neighborhood, baby," I hissed.

"Sh-sh-shikamaru," she murmured back, laying almost flat on me now, her thighs squeezing mine between them, her breath hot against my ear. "If y-you don't shutthefuckup," she spat out, her voice trembling on every word. "I'm going to cummmm… and then jump up… and run and lock myself in the bathroom… and you'll have to finish yourself off by hand…" she threatened, but I could already feel her start to tighten up, balancing, teetering on the edge.

I ran my tongue along the curve of her ear and felt her tighten. "Ungh!" she grunted, and the muscles of her vagina spasmed around me. I couldn't have held on longer if I tried. I let go, not bothering to hold back any noise, just losing myself.

The pleasure receded slowly. I became aware of the hot, sticky press of our skin against each other. Temari's breathing was slowing, still tinged with soft moaning, her hips still rocking to squeeze the last bit of pleasure out of both of us. I brushed her hair out of her face and kissed her, gently. "I love you," I whispered.

She gave me a sweet smile. "I love you too," she whispered back as she slid off of me. "Happy Birthday." Then she closed her eyes.

"Don't fall asleep," I scolded, and shook her a little. She turned her back to me and snuggled in. I sat up and struggled to peel the condom off my wilting penis without spilling the contents. It was stuck as though someone had glued it. "Damn thing," I muttered, managing to slowly pull it off. I dropped it in the wastebasket next to the bed.

Temari's breathing was smoothing out. I snuggled up to her back and she made an irritated noise. "Hey, men are supposed to fall asleep, women are supposed to want to talk and cuddle," I protested.

"You and your damn man/woman crap," she muttered, but turned back to me and smoothed her palm along the side of my face. "I can't believe you held on that long," she said. "Usually virgins pop off almost as soon as they get in there."

I raised an eyebrow. "I take it I'm not the first, eh?" I guessed.

"Is that a problem?"

It wasn't. If the others had been so great, she would have been with one of them, not here in my bed. I shrugged. "My dad told me, 'it doesn't matter if you're a woman's first. It's more important to be her last,'" I quoted.

"Wise man," Temari said, running a fingertip along my lips. "Are you planning on being my last?"

I sensed the real question hiding in the spoken one, and danced around it. "That's up to you," I said coyly.

Temari lay back and closed her eyes again. "Come on," I urged, shaking her shoulder. "I have to keep you awake. Let's take a shower."

She opened one eye. "That does sound good," she admitted, and hauled herself up.

* * *

All the times I relaxed in the shower, working myself up, imagining Temari in there with me, and there she was, soaping herself up, not even an arm's length away. I didn't think it would be an issue; I thought that once we satisfied each other I would be, well, satisfied. But watching her, briskly and efficiently cleaning up in the manner of a person who wastes as little water as possible, I could feel myself begin to twitch to life again. 

I was so used to seeing her hair up; even when it was down from her ponytails it stuck up a little. Now her blonde hair was wet-down and darker. Rivulets of water ran from it and down her back, flowing along the shape of her muscles, to the toned roundness of her ass. Before I knew it, I was as hard as if we hadn't just been making love minutes ago.

Temari turned, saw my erection, and raised an eyebrow. "Surprise?" I said.

She smirked, reached out, and grabbed my knob. "Already?" she said, and got down on her knees.

"You're going to end up with a soapy mouth," I warned, but that wasn't what she was about. Instead she cupped her breasts in her hands and pushed them together around my cock. She rocked back and forth, stroking my cock with her cleavage. Pleasure rippled through me. "You're asking for a face-full," I said.

"I don't think so," she said. "It can go on longer, this time. And my knees are already starting to hurt." Temari pulled herself up to standing and stepped close. "Of course, it's not like you have any condoms in here, too bad." Her lips pulled at mine.

"I'll be right back," I said, and stepped out of the shower. A little water on the floor never hurt, I told myself as I sprinted back to the bedroom. I returned not even a minute later, clutching one between my thumb and forefinger. I put it on and got back in the shower. "Turn around," I commanded.

Temari pursed her lips, turned and planted her hands against the shower wall. I spooned up against her, sliding wet hands all over her. "Mmm…" she hummed, and reached down to rub her nipples, then further down to massage her clit. "Don't leave me waiting too long," she warned.

I reached down, spread her apart, and thrust up into her in one smooth motion. She gasped and ground back against me in a pantomime of how we had been dancing not long ago. Only that had really been the pantomime, and this was the real thing.

I held her around the waist with one arm and used the other hand to stroke her nipples, to work her clit. All the time I kept up the rhythmic pumping. She was a bit looser this time, still wet from our first round. It felt different in other ways; it was less frantic, the pleasure building more slowly but deeper somehow. I had a feeling my legs would get tired before I was done.

This time Temari didn't hold back. I don't know what it is about showers that they have great acoustics, but the sounds of her pleasure seemed to come at me from every direction, as beautiful as any music I've heard.

We went for about twice as long as the time before when Temari let out a moaning cry that I was sure the neighbors would be cursing about. Hah, finally! As for me, it took a few more minutes before I peaked. It seemed to go on forever, pleasure building until I was certain the wave would break, but it kept creeping higher and higher until finally I came.

I withdrew and more or less collapsed on the shower floor, my legs shaking visibly. Temari fell to sitting herself, panting and leaning back against the wall, legs splayed and trembling. "Shikamaru, you're…" she trailed off and just gave me a tired, lazy smile. "Mmm!" she grunted. "That was…"

"Yeah," I agreed. I watched Temari doze through the thick steam, comfortable, warm, and satisfied. She yawned like a cat, and it was so adorable that my heart hurt from loving her.

"I don't want to move," she murmured. "But the faucet is digging into my arm."

"There's a comfortable bed waiting. Come on," I said, struggling to make my legs support me. I offered her my hand and she hauled herself up, surprising me with a kiss when she stood. Her mouth was wet and warm. She giggled, smiling and more carefree than I had seen her in a while.

I remembered what my dad had said about how a vicious woman acts around the man she loves. I guess the old man knew what he was talking about after all.


	8. Chapter 8

**Gaara**

The drinking game had somehow progressed to strip-dice. Tsunade was in a huge white bra that looked more like a piece of a breastplate, and what my sister would call "granny panties." Jiraiya was shirtless. I had removed one shoe.

Shizune walked in then, her cheeks and nose rosy, looking more relaxed. Or she did, until she laid eyes on her mistress sitting in her underclothes, shaking up a handful of dice and muttering. "Tsunade-sama!" Shizune shrieked.

"What?" she slurred back.

"What are you—get your clothes on!" The women began to shout back and forth. Jiraiya slumped back against the couch, snoring. I slid my shoe back on and escaped under cover of the chaos.

Downstairs I realized I left my hat behind. No matter; I'd send for it. Nothing was getting me back in that room.

There were still people dancing and drinking, but Shikamaru and Temari were gone. I didn't see Kankurou anywhere. I decided to return to the hotel.

My hand wasn't even on the doorknob when I knew something was going on. I had heard grumblings from behind other doors as I climbed the stairs, shouts of, "Shut up!" and the creak and crack of violently straining furniture. Outside the door I could tell exactly what was happening.

"Oh god, oh Kankurou!"

"Sakura!"

I yanked my hand away from the doorknob as if it was burning hot. If only my sand wasn't still locked in there with them.

"Ungh! Harder!"

"Squeeze it tight, baby!"

Maybe I could call it from here.

No. Repress the killing urge, Gaara. I would wander the town, then. I never had much opportunity before.

I didn't need to sleep anyway.

Leaving my brother to his "activities," I strolled the streets of Konoha. They were mostly empty save for a few people who had likely left the club and couldn't seem to find their way home. They were laughing, talking, perfectly unaware and unworried about what was going on around them. Not that there was anything going on around them, but it was strange to me, since in Suna even the drunks are wary of being attacked.

I stopped on a bridge that stretched over a narrow expanse of flowing water. The lights of the surrounding buildings glistened off the surface. The soft lapping sound was soothing, just like the susurrus of sand in a breeze is. I never had much of an attraction to water. In fact, I avoided it for the most part, which isn't hard to do in the desert. But I was curious as to what it felt like to swim, to be enfolded by liquid. Whenever we came to Konoha, Temari and Kankurou insisted on stopping by the baths if we had time. I never went in, myself. At home I filled the tub with maybe two inches of water and used a cloth to scrub myself, but I never liked the idea of soaking in it.

I walked off of the bridge and around to the stones at the edge of the stream. If I sat on one of them, I could just dangle my feet in the water. I slid my shoes off and dipped a toe in. It was surprisingly cold, but refreshing. Taking a deep breath, I plunged my feet in to the ankles and bit back a cry of surprise.

It felt strange, but good. My feet soon grew used to the cold, and I enjoyed the flowing sensation. After a while, I pulled my feet back up and shook droplets of water off of them before sliding my shoes back on.

I didn't want to know what my subjects in Suna would say if they heard of their kazekage dangling his feet in the water like a child. I hope no one saw me.

The sky was growing lighter but still dark when I reached the top of the hill Temari had once pointed out as, "where that lazy-ass Shikamaru spends most of his time." There was a lone maple tree standing sentinel there. I sat at its base and leaned against it. The grass was damp under my hands. This was a novelty to me. It's so dry in Suna that the change in air moisture is palpable here. No wonder Temari likes it so much.

It was comfortable, a good place to forget the scrabble for survival for a little while.

Since I never slept, I'd seen a lot of sunrises, but all of them over desert sand. As the sky began to turn colors I wondered if the sunrise over the trees was different than the sunrise over the desert.

**Temari**

I picked up Shikamaru's flak jacket off his chair and slid it on. He was lounging on his bed, sitting against the headboard with one arm thrown over the back, ogling me. He was still naked, his hair wet and down out of its ponytail. The strange thing was I felt sexier like this than in that slutty dress with all the makeup, and it seemed like he thought so too.

"I think you look better in that," he said, confirming my suspicions.

I chuckled and held it open to flash him. His smile widened. "I should probably stop fooling around and come to bed, huh? I don't know how early my brothers want to leave," I said. An aching started to spread through my chest and into my throat, constricting my breathing. Leaving. I looked to where Shikamaru sat and tried to drink in every detail, already missing him, already depressed.

It would be just like every other time we parted, after I finally realized that the reason Suna seemed so dull and the reason I wanted to lie in bed all day and snap at anyone who came near was because I loved him and knowing it would be months before I saw him again, if I ever saw him again, was death.

His face lost its playful look. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," I insisted, and removed his jacket, resisting the urge to bring it to my face and inhale his scent, to try and imbed the memory.

"Your face fell. What are you thinking about?"

"I don't want to leave," I admitted.

"Then don't."

I laughed bitterly.

"I'm serious," he insisted.

"You can't be," I said, turning away. "I can't take time off, all last-minute…"

I heard a sigh behind me, and the rather predictable uttering of, "Troublesome…" though whether he was referring to the situation or just me I didn't know. Then he surprised the hell out of me: "We should just get married."

"What?" I turned back around.

Shikamaru sighed heavily. "I'm sick of this. The trips back and forth, the sneaking around. It isn't fair to us or to what we have together. We're treating it like it's some forbidden love affair or some childish crush, and it isn't."

He folded his arms over his chest. "At first we thought it was just a silly crush, that it'd go away if we just denied it. Then we figured it was some mad infatuation that would be satisfied if we gave in to it and let it run its course. But it hasn't, has it?" It wasn't really a question. He gave me a sad smile. "We don't know how much time we have, you know, the life we live. We could live to be old or we could die tomorrow." His voice cracked a little, and he looked down, blinking, probably afraid I'd call him a crybaby if he started tearing up. "It'd just be nice if I could spend what time there is _with_ you instead of missing you," he murmured.

I opened my mouth, then closed it, not knowing how to respond. Finally I just shook it off and busied myself with collecting my clothes, folding them, laying them on the chair. "You're being silly," I snapped.

"Am I? Isn't it sillier to act like a couple of love-sick idiots instead of mature adults?"

"Maybe it's better if we're apart most of the time. Then it'll be special. We won't be around each other all the time, getting tired of each other, taking each other for granted—"

"Temari, I _want_ to be able to take you for granted," he said, and I felt a spike of anger at that until he explained, "I want to wake up next to you and know that I'll see you when I come home. I don't want every day to hurt because you're not around. I want to be able to do my job without losing my focus." He paused and I watched him out of the corner of my eye. He was mulling something around, trying to decide whether to voice it. "Last mission, we almost got caught—"

"—because of Chouji's piggishness—"

"—no, not entirely." He sighed. "They were alerted by the sound, but if we had stayed quiet enough they would have brushed it off. It was me. I was distracted that day, because I knew it was your birthday, and I was thinking of you, and wishing I was there with you, and hoping my letter arrived on time, and hoping that either way you weren't furious with me or sad that I couldn't make it."

I had been furious. It was one of the worst birthdays I had, when that letter arrived and I realized Shikamaru wasn't going to make it to Suna. I wrote him off after that, determined to get him out of my system. But once I got to Konoha I changed my mind. Walking toward that gate, I got the same old flutters of joy knowing I'd see him again. I wondered if he would detach himself from the shadow of the wall and rib me about being a pain in his ass.

There was shame in his voice as he went on, "I forgot to wrap my kunai. They clanked together and the guards realized we were there. It was only because my team could think on their feet that we made it out all right." He sighed and looked away, out the window. "I shouldn't have made jounin after that. But Ino left it out of her report on purpose. She said she knew my mind was somewhere else." Shikamaru's hands clenched into fists. "But it shouldn't have been! What kind of ninja am I if I can't shove my emotions down and focus on the job?" His hands relaxed and rested palms-down on his thighs. He smirked. "You're more troublesome now when you're _not_ with me," he said.

"You haven't thought this through," I insisted, not willing to believe it was possible, all the thoughts I wrote off as silly daydreams. Shikamaru as my husband, having a family together, these were thoughts that I pushed down so quickly that it was as if I was afraid of someone seeing them.

His eyes fixed on mine. "Temari, have I ever decided on something without thinking it through?"

"Then what's your plan, master strategist?" I challenged.

Shikamaru beckoned. "Come sit with me first," he said. I went over to the bed and slid in under the covers. He reached his arm out and pulled me in closer. I snuggled up to his warmth, trying to fight the tightness in my chest.

"Other countries hire shinobi from their allies all the time, when they come up short, right? Your own daimyo hires out Konoha shinobi all the time."

"I know," I said, trying to keep the bitterness from my voice. Everyone knew Konoha ninja were superior. It was because the daimyo hired them that he could restrict the number of ninja Suna could have. It was because of this that my village had been in decline for so long that we had been desperate enough to ally with the Sound and attack the Leaf.

"Our villages are allied. Suna doesn't want war anymore than Konoha does. They're welcoming anything that makes that alliance stronger. We're trading knowledge, training techniques, experts."

"And your point?" I prodded.

"We get married. We get permanent resident visas from each other's villages. Gaara hires me from Tsunade for a while, then Tsunade hires you from Gaara. Repeat as necessary." He kissed my forehead as if it was as simple as all that.

I shook my head, still unwilling to believe it. "You really think they'll agree to that?" I asked.

"I've already talked to Tsunade and Gaara about it. Tsunade thought it could work. I think Gaara is waiting on your word," he said, and gave me a tentative smile.

My body relaxed and I allowed myself to hope, just a little. "Are you asking?" I asked, looking up at him.

"Well, it's not like I have a ring or anything," he evaded.

"Ninja shouldn't wear rings anyway," I scoffed. "Gold's too soft."

"Married ninja do. They just tuck them away when they're on a mission. And I was thinking platinum."

I gasped. "And how the hell will you afford platinum?" I demanded, pulling away to give him a disbelieving look.

Shikamaru groaned. "Everyone thinks I can't afford shit! What do you think I do with my money? I don't _do_ anything but work and slack off. I don't have any expensive pastimes. I spend more money on Chouji eating and Ino shopping than on anything else." He gave me an exasperated yet loving look. "I've been saving up."

"You _have_ been planning ahead." I narrowed my eyes. "And what if I say no?"

"I'll use the money to drown my sorrows in hard liquor and loose women," he said drolly. He settled down with his head on the pillow and looked up at me. "Just think about it," he said. "Talk to Gaara."

I cuddled down next to him. "Idiot, the answer's yes already."

"I knew it," he said, and reached over to turn out the light.

"Hey," I said. "You're not worried the sex will get boring?"

"Hell no," Shikamaru replied, unseen in the darkness. "We haven't even gotten into the shadow stuff yet."

I chuckled, "I never knew you were so kinky." Unseen, he tweaked my left nipple and I yelped in surprise, flailing my hand out into the darkness in hopes of slapping him. I hit the pillow instead; he's always been better at shadows than me, creature of the sun that I am. He laughed and pulled me down into his arms for a kiss, luckily for him immobilizing my arms in the process.

"What can I say? I'm full of surprises. Now let's get some sleep before the sun comes up."

"You're not going to get up before noon anyway," I teased. He faked a snore. "All right, then, goodnight. I love you, lazy ass."

"I love you, troublesome woman."

It felt so good to hear it. It felt even better to sleep next to him for the first time, feeling his warmth and hearing him breathe. I tried to imagine a day when it wouldn't be a big deal, and failed. But I was starting to like the idea.

**Neji**

I woke up to the sound of retching. I was on the floor, with one leg propped up on the bed, the other feeling what I hoped were unvanquished dustbunnies. I felt a bit rough myself, and fuzzy. The room was a mess. The floor was covered with clothes, not all of them clothes I had worn the previous day. I searched until I found a pair of underpants that seemed clean and put them on.

The retching continued. I followed it to the bathroom to find Tenten moaning into the toilet bowl. I knelt behind her and pulled her hair back from her face.

I never thought I'd be holding Tenten's hair for her while she worked a wild night's worth of poisons from her system. At least, I never thought it would be unrelated to a mission.

"Thanks," she managed to get out before another heave. To keep myself from taking part in a domino-reaction of sick, I focused on trying to remember the previous night.

I could remember up until Hinata and the others left. The rest was a kaleidoscope of sensation. I remembered Tenten's voice washing over me, the sensation of sinking into her skin, watching her chakra pulse with newfound awe as the drug she slipped me made the byakugan seem brand-new. I glanced over at the wastebasket and saw a line of condoms, like drying laundry, hanging over the edge.

No wonder I felt so chafed.

Tenten flushed the toilet and lay her head down on the seat as if deciding she was going to sleep there. I still held her hair back. It was, I realized, as silky and soft as mine.

I brushed a few sweat-damp strands out of her face. I wanted to take care of her, suddenly, to wash her up and tuck her in bed and make her something soothing to eat. "Neji," she said, her voice raw from retching. "I'm sorry. I am _never_ doing that again. That was _horrible_."

My face burned. "It wasn't _all_ horrible," I muttered.

She hurried to correct herself. "No, I didn't mean it like that! It wasn't horrible at all. I mean this is, and I drank so much, and that drug. What was I thinking?" She smiled weakly, her eyes half shut. "But being with you…" she began.

"I love you," I blurted out, before I could talk myself out of it.

"Neji!" she said with a surprised smile. "I love you too—"

A door slid open somewhere in the house and my uncle Hiashi's voice bellowed, "_What the fuck happened here? NEJI!_"

Oh shit…


	9. Chapter 9

**Shikamaru**

We did end up getting up after noon, at one o'clock to be precise. I waited outside Temari's hotel room while she went in to get some proper clothes; we made the walk of shame with her wearing the dress she had worn last night. I had offered her some of my clothes, but she turned me down, saying that would be saying the exact same thing.

She came out looking like Temari again, in her black kimono, her fan strapped to her back. She was making a face.

"Kankurou. And Sakura. Ugh." She shuddered. "At least they were asleep. At least Sakura was under the covers. But I had to throw a blanket over my baby brother's naked ass." I winced in sympathy.

"So," I said as we walked down the stairs, "out of curiosity, _did_ he push all three beds together?"

"Yes," Temari said, her voice taut with disgust.

We shuddered in unison.

"Wait, what about Gaara then?"

Temari looked thoughtful for a moment. "You know, I have no idea where Gaara spent the night."

**Gaara**

I woke up. That meant I had to have been asleep. I didn't remember sleeping, just that I was watching the sunrise and thinking that the colors were slightly different than they were back home. For one, there were clouds, and the colored light had an interesting affect to them. Some had seemed limned in gold.

I looked up. Against the blue sky the tree looked like it was on fire.

I stared, transfixed, at the bright colors. Crimson, rust, golden, waving gently in the breeze. My mind couldn't make sense of it. Leaves were green. I told myself that this was a natural phenomenon that I had been told about, but it seemed too unreal. I couldn't look away.

My neck ached, so I linked my hands behind my head to cushion it.

It was so peaceful. And these beautiful leaves.

No wonder Shikamaru spent so much time up here.

**Shikamaru**

We were having a stroll and enjoying some dango sticks when Kankurou shuffled up to us. His face was almost covered with paint, all complicated whorls and slashes, more than I had ever seen him with. He'd even copied Gaara's "love" kanji on his forehead, only with a big X through it. "Hey," he muttered, looking angsty and conflicted.

"Whath yo pobleb?" Temari asked, muffled by her chewing.

"Yeah, I thought you had a fun night," I added.

"You're glowing, Nara," Kankurou jeered.

I drew myself up a little taller. "I have a beautiful woman on my arm. Where's yours?"

Kankurou sulked, hunching his shoulders. "Sakura gave me the ol' 'I was drunk and didn't realize what I was doing' bullshit," he grumbled.

"Aww, poor Kanky," Temari cooed.

"Shut up!" Kankurou retorted.

"Don't get tetchy with me because you're hung-over and rejected," Temari warned, pointing her dango stick dangerously close to his eye.

Kankurou came out of his sulk a little. "Actually, she healed my hangover before she left," he said, sounding somewhat mystified. Temari and I exchanged a secret look and she smiled. Kankurou exploded again, "What are _you_ so happy for? We leave today and it'll be months before you see lover-boy here again. Are you gonna cry in your room for a week again, Temari?"

"I'll tell you later," Temari said. Her eyebrows rose a fraction as she looked past Kankurou's shoulder. "Oh!" she exclaimed. "There's Gaara."

Gaara strode up to us. He had a few dried leaves clinging to his hair. I held back a laugh. "Good afternoon," he said.

"Where's your hat?" Temari asked in the tone my mother always used when I lost something yet again.

Was Gaara actually turning pink? "It's no big deal," he said hurriedly.

"I thought you liked your stupid hat," Kankurou snipped.

Gaara cleared his throat and changed the subject. "Shall we leave soon? If we make good time we might hit the desert at night."

"Whatever you want, Gaara," Temari agreed.

Gaara looked at her for a moment, then at me, then turned to Kankurou. "She's in a good mood," he remarked. Kankurou grunted, arms folded, eyebrows still diving together.

"I want to talk to you, Gaara, but it can wait until we're on our way," Temari said. She gave my hand a squeeze and I could tell she was trying to hide her excitement. It was hard to keep a grin off of my own face.

"All right," Gaara said, his eyes narrowing a fraction.

"Kazekage-sama!" came a shout as Shizune sped around a corner and skidded to a stop in front of us, holding her knees and panting. In one hand was Gaara's hat. Ton-ton came galloping behind to crash into Shizune's legs. "Tsunade-sama wishes she could send you off in person but she's, ehm, not feeling too well," Shizune explained. Ton-ton made a scornful "hweh" noise. "I brought your hat!" Shizune explained when she caught her breath. "I had it cleaned, too. It's spotless, so don't worry." She held it out with a hopeful grin.

Gaara looked at it as if it was covered in spit. "May I ask why it needed to be cleaned?"

Shizune looked nervous. "Um, some sake got spilled on it," she mumbled.

"Partially digested sake?" Gaara responded darkly.

"Um," Shizune said, her face reddening. "More like fully digested. Jiraiya-sama thought it was a urinal." She lowered the hat and her face in shame.

"Uch," Temari uttered.

"Hweh!" Ton-ton snorted.

Gaara almost sneered. "Burn it. I have more at home," he decided. Shizune bowed and backed away. "Give the hokage my thanks for an, um, interesting night," Gaara said. Shizune nodded and fled, with Ton-ton on her heels.

"Are we ready to go?" Gaara asked when she had gone.

Temari looked at me and gave me a little smile. "Yes," she told him. "I think so."

"Definitely," Kankurou muttered. "I can't wait to get the fuck out of this place."

After they retrieved their luggage and checked out, I saw them to the gate, as always. "Have a safe trip," I said. Gaara nodded, Kankurou grunted and turned his back to go. I waited for Temari's wave, or wink, but instead she crossed to me, flung her arms around my neck, and kissed me. It was a moment or two before I caught up and wrapped my arms around her to return it. Kankurou's mouth was hanging open, and Gaara looked thoughtful. Temari broke off and pulled back, a joyful smile on her face and her eyes sparkling with delight. "See you later," she said, and turned to follow her brothers.

I folded my arms, leaned against the gate, and watched them go.


	10. Epilogue

**Temari**

It was a little over a month later when we returned to Konoha. The trees were in full color, some of them bare of leaves already. Dried leaves stirred in the breeze and crunched under our feet as we walked. 

Shikamaru didn't meet us at the gate; he had told me to meet him "where the club used to be" which meant that, as he predicted, it hadn't lasted long.

People were starting to recognize us, and some of them even greeted us with smiles or nods or a wave of the hand. "Friendly town, eh?" Kankurou murmured as he gave a curt nod to yet another person.

"Yeah," I said, somewhat distracted. Gaara was distracted too; we kept losing him along the way. "Gaara, come on," I urged. He looked away from the tree he had been staring at, his expression almost guilty.

We were dressed normally this time, Kankurou huddled in his hoodie, Gaara with his gourd and without anything to declare him as kazekage except his bearing, which was somewhat diminished by his obvious interest in the season change. The weight of the fan strapped to my back was reassuring.

"What's your hurry?" Gaara asked as he caught up. "You know he'll wait for you."

"I know," I replied, but I still walked quickly down the street.

We reached the building. The neon leaf was gone, replaced by a hanging wooden sign that swayed in the wind. "The Perverted Hermit," it read, and had a silhouette of someone who was shaped suspiciously like Jiraiya chasing a buxom young woman. I shook my head.

There was no line, no bouncer or doorman, no velvet rope. Kankurou went forward and pushed the door open, holding it so I could pass inside.

The place seemed a lot smaller and cozier, all warm, varnished wood instead of plastic and metal. There was only one bar now, and that's where Shikamaru sat, in front of two pale yellow shots. He didn't look up when the door opened, though Jiraiya, behind the bar, gave us a huge grin. Everyone seemed to be there. Tsunade sat at a table across from Shizune, who was clutching her little pig on her lap. Ino and Chouji sat at another table with Sakura and Naruto. Chouji appeared to be working his way through a mountain of chicken wings; a pile of soiled napkins lay on the floor around his chair.

I slid onto the stool next to Shikamaru's, and I could tell by his crooked smile that he knew the instant I walked in. Kankurou sat next to me but a few seats apart, while Gaara joined Naruto's table. Everyone was taking part in their own private conversations, but I could sense their eyes on us.

Shikamaru nudged one of the shots over to me. "A little early in the day for that, don't you think?" I teased, but raised the glass.

Finally our eyes met. My breath caught. Shikamaru brought his glass up to mine with a clink. "To us," he whispered, and smiled.

I echoed his toast and we downed our shots. "How was the trip?" he asked.

"Chilly, but it's a nice change," I replied. "I thought we'd never get here because Gaara kept wanting to examine the coloration of every different kind of leaf in the forest."

Shikamaru chuckled. I sensed movement to my right; Sakura had gotten up and settled herself next to Kankurou at the bar. "Hey," I heard her say hesitantly. Kankurou grunted in response. "I wanted to apologize for what I said last time," Sakura went on.

"Really?" Kankurou said, his voice free of growling bravado. I wanted to laugh. He sounded so hopeful. Good luck, little bro.

Shikamaru reached into a pocket of his flak jacket and took out a little wooden box. I got a little ceramic pillbox out of my pocket and slid it over to him as he slid the box over to me. We opened them at the same time. He was true to his word; it was platinum, just a flat band with a leafy vine engraved around it. The one I got him was similar, only engraved with cactus flowers.

"I hope you aren't emasculated by the flowers," I teased.

"I think I'm secure enough in my manliness," he replied, and lifted it out of the box to examine it. "You know my mom's gonna kill me for going behind her back like this."

I waved that away. "She can throw us a big party if she wants," I offered. We would know that the real thing happened here, without fancy costumes, big cakes, flowers and music and useless pageantry. We weren't going to wait a year while Nara Yoshino planned a huge, fancy, bothersome production.

Shikamaru took the leafy ring from me, lifted my left hand, kissed it. I smiled. He held the ring poised to slip onto my finger.

"Let's do this properly now, kids," Tsunade said right behind us. We turned in our seats. She stood there, holding a scroll. "You know how much I hate doing paperwork, so you should appreciate this," she continued, unrolling the contract. "Who are your witnesses?"

I gestured to Kankurou, who excused himself from Sakura. Chouji dropped a gnawed bone, hurriedly licked his fingers, and rushed to Shikamaru's side.

There were no spoken vows. Words are cheap, anyway, and we knew what this meant. Shikamaru signed his name first, then I signed mine. Chouji and Kankurou followed, and Tsunade added hers last as officiator. Then she took out another, smaller scroll. "Your visa," she said, and handed it to me. I tucked it securely away. Gaara handed Shikamaru his.

"Well?" I said, holding out my hand to Shikamaru again. He took the ring and slid it on my finger. I did the same with his. Everyone's eyes were on us. Shikamaru licked his lips nervously. I reached out and touched his face; he relaxed. We leaned in, our lips barely brushing at first, then meeting. The room erupted in applause.

" Drinks on me!" Jiraiya announced as people started lining up to give their congratulations.

"I don't have to threaten you with anything, Nara," Kankurou said with a smirk as he shook Shikamaru's hand. "I know she'll kick your ass herself if you do her wrong." He winked at me and I shook my head at him, smiling.

Ino and Sakura hugged me at the same time. "I'm so happy for you!" Ino sobbed.

"So, when am I getting grandkids?" Gaara asked.

The room when silent as everyone wondered whether it was safe to laugh.

"I think you mean nieces and nephews, Gaara," I corrected him gently.

"Right, of course," Gaara amended.

"Um, not for a while," Shikamaru said nervously.

The door boomed open and Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inoichi, and Akimichi Chouza walked in, laughing and talking. They stopped when they saw us. Shikaku gave his son a confused look. Realization dawned when he saw the rings on our hands and his confusion transformed into a smug, knowing look. "I knew it!" he exclaimed, and laughed. "I knew I saw you at the jeweler a few weeks ago! Your mother thought I was crazy. 'He'd never do that without discussing it with us first, Shikaku!' Congratulations!" He came forward to sweep us both into a bear hug.

"Dad, don't tell Mom yet, okay?" Shikamaru pleaded.

His father winked. "Don't worry. I just came here for a drink. C'mon, guys," he beckoned to the other two men. They went to sit at the corner of the bar.

Tsunade looked to Gaara. "I formally request the hire of Nara Temari," she said. My new name sounded strange, but good.

"Request accepted," Gaara responded. "She's all yours."

"Well, Temari, Shikamaru, I have a mission for the two of you," Tsunade announced. I straightened up, hiding my disappointment.

Shikamaru wasn't as stoic. "Hokage-sama, can't we even have a honeymoon?"

Tsunade went on as though he hadn't spoken. "You are to go to Otafuku City and bring me back one of those toy ANBU masks they sell at the festival."

"What?" I couldn't help but exclaim. What kind of mission was that?

"This mission should probably take you about a week," Tsunade went on, ignoring my outburst. "Now, I know that accommodations aren't cheap there. Normally I'd have you file an expense report but, like I said, I hate paperwork," she said, dropping a bulging money purse into Shikamaru's hand.

He turned his head towards me, the beginnings of a smirk creeping onto his face. Ah, she was being clever, giving us this "mission" to one of the entertainment capitals of the Fire Country. "Any particular mask you have your eye on, Hokage-sama?" Shikamaru asked, trying to keep a straight face.

Tsunade pondered a moment. "I don't think I have a deer in my collection yet," she said.

"Yes, Hokage-sama," Shikamaru replied. "We should get going, then," he said to me with a wink. "We still have to go back to the apartment to… pack." He waved to everyone. "Feel free to celebrate in our absence," he shouted. "And Dad?" Shikaku looked up. "Wait until after I've left to tell Mom?"

"I'll wait until tomorrow," Shikaku replied. "You won't want her chasing you down the road, brandishing a frying pan."

"Good point," Shikamaru muttered. "See you in a week, then."

"Goodbye!" "Have fun, you two!" "Be careful!" I gave everyone a wave as we exited.

We walked out into the street, loosely holding hands. Shikamaru was already fiddling with my ring, twisting it around on my finger. "Knock it off, that's irritating," I griped.

"Sorry."

We sighed and smiled at each other. "Feel any different?" I asked.

"Happier."

"Yeah." I leaned against him for a moment, then we kept walking back to his place. "I'm already packed. I left my stuff outside your door."

"I have to get a key made for you," he said. "Remind me next week." He shook his head and smiled. "Tsunade's funny."

"That was a clever move," I agreed.

We reached his door and he fiddled with the key as I hauled up my pack. "You'd better hurry up with your packing; we're losing daylight already," I prodded.

Shikamaru opened the door, then turned and pulled me inside and into a fierce embrace. Our lips met and melded, and he reached around and started to untie my obi as he kicked the door shut. "We'll have time for that when we get there," I protested between kisses.

"Can't wait," he replied, and moved down to kiss my neck.

"Oh, all right," I gave in, and he smiled in triumph. "You win."

END


End file.
